Hidden Truth
by bugzii
Summary: What do you do if everything you know is a lie? Based on the early chapters of the manga from after Rin's identity is relieved. Can be read without prior knowledge.
1. Prologue: Memories

Memories

True Cross Academy stood tall and proud. Large gates at the very boarder of the prestigious school guarded against human intruders. They were the only visible entrance to the immense mass of brickwork and plaster. And inside? A quality of learning that could be envied throughout the world. Pupils with grades of the highest standard and family lineage of upper class, privileged families. Food cooked to perfection by Japan's top star chefs.

This well established school was a learners paradise. And this was all thanks to one very charismatic gentleman by the name of Sir Mephisto Pheles, or Samael to his close family, Chairman and Head of the exclusive academy. Those that have seen him on a good day would probably notice his strange dress sense and happy-go-lucky attitude to anything and everything. He wore clothes that seemed to come from a high class noble from medieval times, though others may say that they look more like the attire of a clown. He could be easily recognised by his top hat and crisp, white fabrics.

The second thing that would be noticed by any new passer-by is his smooth curve of his check bones and his unusually bright smile that was so deeply embedded into his face that he would appear happy, even when not. His eyes were both wild and calm, and lit up any room he stepped in. Truly the eyes of a mischievous child, and not those of a stern adult. Some would call him handsome. Others would give him at least give him their respect.

There were a few though, hidden from public eye and knowledge, that sought to bring the entrepreneur down and condemn him based on pure superstitions for what he, in actuality, was. Luckily, Mephisto always stayed one step ahead. He had what they wanted. What they needed. Information. Power. Ability. Loyalty.

And all this strife came from being a demon. Distinct from his relatively normal features were ears that pointed at the tips and long canines which overlapped his bottom lip ever so slightly. And, though hidden exceptionally well, a thin sensitive tail extended from the base of his spine. According to the very laws of nature, he was part of the race most feared by humans, an enemy of Man. The very thought of it brought bile to the back of his throat. But Mephisto was not one for feeling negatively. Aside from the obvious differences, this demon found humans to be quite interesting.

These short lived two-leggers somehow were able to evolve their culture at a dramatic rate and could adapt to situations that could be considered unbearable, or so different that even he himself would not know what to do. And most importantly, they survived. Something about these weak, frail creations of God was somehow ensuring the race's survival. It puzzled him to no end.

But it was one human in particular that held his interest. Out of all creatures that came from the Earth, not one would show such compassion to demon spawn as this one. A man by the name of Shiro. Mephisto had watched him go from a youth to an exorcist, to a priest, to a middle-first class, and finally to a paladin. When younger, this human seemed to be like the others but he suddenly changed one day. His despisal towards his kind softened and, in time, he was able to accept the similarities in attitudes and opinions. Both races had good and bad. As those from Assiah had wars and greed and murderer and discrimination, Gehenna also had evil. However, it was only the evil that most chose to only see. Shiro never truly understood up until old age; he merely felt pity for his enemy.

This changed dramatically when an old friend turned up at his door. She was having husband issues. Her marriage seemed to be going well until the stress began to build up. The husband had spent less and less time with his partner, and finally had one day left and hadn't returned. Shiro welcomed her to his humble livings and aided her as much as he could. Unfortunately, this gave the enemy a great opportunity. The devil himself decided to use the girl in her weakened state to attack the paladin.

Her husband appeared in an almost drunken state one day and raped her. In truth, he had been possessed. Blue vibrant fire lit up his body. Fujimoto had been away at that time at a meeting. The fire left the husband in a crumpled, burnt, and bloody mess on the floor. His body disappeared mysteriously. It was reported that it simply ceased to exist. Satan's possession, though short, had also done ample damage to the woman.

A test came back positive. She was pregnant. Shiro had tried to keep the news from the Grigori, but to no avail. He had been ordered to terminate the child and mother through any means necessary. This order he refused to follow. But the strain on her body was too much. She died a little before her due date.

Mephisto remembered the pained eyes of his associate, which he kept hidden behind a false scowl. Not only had he lost a friend, but also her child. Or so he thought. Upon inspection of the body at the scene, two heartbeats were discovered by the equipment. Shiro prayed to God. He thanked him for this miracle; that mother and babe were spared their fate that day. But it was not the mother to whom the second heartbeat belonged.

Without a second thought, Mephisto punctured the woman's stomach with his claws and pulled out one screaming baby. Little blue flames danced on his skin, much to his surprise. Shiro was at a loss for words. Probably from the mutilated body of the mother more than anything. He had yet to notice the small, red creature in his associates arms.

Mephisto then went back to the dearly departed to repeat the process one final time. Shiro watched him now. He watched a tiny limp body emerge from the womb. It dangled lifelessly from Mephisto's hand. Blood splattered beneath it. Shiro took the child gently from him and tapped the chest to encourage it to breathe. It took a while but soon the younger of the twins was breathing on his own.

And that's where he left. The future of the two orphaned boys rested with the paladin. What he didn't expect was Shiro's decision to raise the twins himself. In respect for his actions, Mephisto helped him seal the demonic power within the eldest twin in a holy sword. This would allow the children to be brought up as humans and live a fairly normal life.

Or at least that was what was supposed to happen. What he hadn't predicted was the tiny seed of power planted when Satan possessed the mother to grow and mature as the boy grew and matured. The youngest twin, Yukio, was discovered to have the ability to see that which normal humans could not, and trained to be an exorcist by none other than Shiro himself. Still, the seal held firm until fifteen years on. But that was when the problems began to occur.

Shiro updated Mephisto with the news the month that it had started to weaken. Occasionally, vibrant blue flames appeared when his adopted son's emotions went haywire. The hormones were expected with a teenage boy. The flames, however, were not. Unfortunately, it was the eldest boy's emotions that became Shiro's downfall. For the longest time, the paladin had kept up a barrier within himself to block Satan's possession, but that wall crumbled at the eldest child's rejection. The flames consumed him and he died a horrifying death. In a spur-of-the-moment decision, Rin, the older twin, took the sword and pulled it from the scabbard, undoing the seal and transforming him into a full fledged demon.

Mephisto met him for the second time at the funeral. The small baby had grown into a young man. In honour of his friend, he granted Rin the ability to choose his path. Either he would follow the path of his own destruction, or he would struggle up the path of survival. The latter was chosen. The eldest twin would join the youngest twin at his school to learn the art of exorcism; the skills to exterminate his own kind.

This was necessary.


	2. Chapter 1: Sluggish

Sluggish

Rin woke in the comforts of his bed in the abandoned dorm at True Cross Academy. His scruffy tail was draped awkwardly off the edge of the mattress along with half of the duvet. The clock that sat facing him read 4:32. Through squinted eyes, he watched his brother, Yukio, quietly grab his exorcist jacket and exit the shared bedroom, undoubtedly for a mission. It was a surprise to Rin when he had first found out that his younger twin was not only an exorcist, but a teacher as well. The first time that he had seen a demon was the night that Father Shiro Fujimoto died. His world had been turned upside down. Not only did he find out that his life up until that moment had been a lie, but also that he was the 'son' of the demon that had killed the only father figure he had known. He daren't look at his own reflection too long and never looked directly at his eyes, for he feared what he might see staring back.

There was still enough time to sleep a little longer before school started. Rin lay silently and gazed blankly at the ceiling. The room had been cleared up a fair amount when they had arrived at the school. He had been designated the whole dorm because he was dangerous to the other students. Not only that, if he was found out to be in actual fact a demon by anyone outside the small amount of teachers and those trusted with his secret, he would have to face his definite elimination. Rin's life truly dangled by a thread. He walked along a bleak, narrow tightrope above a fiery pit. If he placed a single foot wrong he would fall.

And fall he did. His friends found out. Then the Grigori. He had been allowed to live so long as he trained to become a weapon for humanity. But six months to show his worth was not enough. His progress at the academy had been minimal. It was already clear that he would fail the exam that was set for him. He would die.

It should make him nervous, scared even. Rin didn't care any more. He would prefer to live to have the smallest chance at revenge. But Rin had accepted his death little step by little step over the past few months. The schooling was okay to begin with. It was a fresh start. He met people who talked to him like he was a normal person. No-one had done this before, not even when he was human. As a human, Rin had been treated as an outcast and was feared because of his abnormal strength and his lack of control over his actions. All of the times that classmates, parents and teachers had called him 'demon' he now realised that they were correct. Those words didn't hurt nearly as much as they used to.

He rolled over onto his side and traced his eyes over a cobweb in the far corner of the room. That was Yukio's side of the room, the side closest to the door. On some days that half stayed empty. It was lonely but he'd never let Yukio know. Rin was the older brother. Older brothers took care of younger siblings, or at least they were supposed to. Lately the opposite proved to be more true. Yukio was looking after him.

Rin couldn't sleep, so he got up and walked through the dark corridors of the dorm. Half the lights were broken so he didn't bother turning them on. He turned the corner and walked down a flight of stairs into the kitchen. Cooking was one of the few things Rin was good at. Yukio had suggested for him to make their lunches for school to save money. The demon had complied happily. Even if it was a small thing, he was still helping his younger brother.

Rin walked clumsily to the counter by the sink and reached up to the cabinet above his head. Inside were a few mugs and glasses. He chose a glass and pulled a small leaver behind the taps. Water flowed steadily into the sink. Rin's hand found it's way under the spout which filled the glass quickly with water. Then he heard a small plonk on the table behind him.

The demon needn't turn around. There was no mistaking the scent of his pet familiar. Rin didn't mean to wake him. The cat sídhe must have followed him from his room.

He quickly opened another cupboard and grabbed a dish, then stumbled to the fridge to retrieve a bottle of semi-skimmed milk. The milk was poured onto the dish and set on the table in front of the cat demon. The cat, Kuro, beamed at him before lapping contently at his breakfast. Cow milk wasn't technically good for cats to drink, so Rin only served it occasionally.

He motioned to the chair and slumped into it; half sighing, half hissing. Rin had sat on his tail again. It immediately yanked out from under him and crumpled in on itself in agony whilst his face grimaced slightly. Out of all of the things that came with his new demon self; the fangs, the claws, the narrowed pupils and the pointed ears, his tail by far was the one thing that he could not get used to. The heightened senses of his ears and nose were a surprise in the first few weeks after he'd awakened, but they were more useful than a nuisance. He could tell if others were nearby and understand the language of his fellow demons.

Kuro nudged Rin's arm affectionately. The familiar coaxed his carer into petting him. It didn't take much effort. Rin lifted his hand above the Kuro's head and the cat demon pushed into it as it traced the line of his back. This was calming.

Rin slouched back on his chair and dozed to the sound of Kuro's contented purr. Slowly his head became heavy and his hand lowered from the cat's ears to the table. Both slept soundly till light streamed through the windows.


	3. Chapter 2: Another day

Another day

School lessons started. Morning was mainly comprised of Biology and Physics. Biology had not always been a touchy subject for Rin but today's lesson was pushing it. The class had been learning human biology from the start of the term. About a week in to it, Rin had discovered just how different he really was. At first he was under the impression that the few changes to his appearance were just add-ons to this human body, but he was slowly understanding that this was not the case. His bone, muscle, and nervous system were different. His metabolism abnormal. His instincts feral. Fire no longer hurt. Parts of him were overly sensitive. His nails retracted. And he had started to be able to move his ears if he concentrated hard enough. It was proof that his body had not stopped changing. He was becoming less and less human.

And to add fuel to the fire, the Physic's teacher thought it would be fun to have a class experiment on frequencies of sound waves. On the white board he had drawn two lines. One had a neat squiggly line moving through it. The other was similar except the squiggles were closer together.

Rin liked this teacher because it was easy to understand what he was talking about. It meant that Rin could actually get decent grades. He wasn't at the top of the class by any means, but he wasn't at the bottom either. As a result, he wasn't constantly pestered by the teacher to try harder.

The teacher pointed out a grey box on his desk and tuned it on. The box produced a low hum. He talked about how there was only a small range of frequencies that the human ear could detect. He then steadily increased the frequency. The sound from the box became higher in pitch. The pattern was simple enough for Rin to understand.

When the sound reached the point that only a few of his classmates could barely hear, Rin recorded the sound to memory. He could still hear it quite clearly. But the frequency climbed higher. Rin ears began to ache but the thought nothing of it. His classmates had complained that their ears ached at some point during the lesson so this must be the same. It was only when the teacher told him to go to the infirmary that Rin noticed the thin, red ribbon of blood, starting at his ear, and trickling across his cheek and down his neck.

The bleeding had stopped quickly but he could still hear the high pitched ringing.

Lunch was normal. Rin grabbed the meal that he had prepared the night before and walked over to the benches outside. He noticed his brother's scent from across the fountain. Yukio had probably only attended one or two classes after coming back from his mission. At one time, Rin would have ran up to him and larked about, but now he knew that there was no point. His brother already had too much on his plate without having to deal with the hyperactive demon that killed his father.

Yukio had sat on the marble rim of the fountain. Instead of a cheery attitude, Rin walked up to him and silently and placed his lunch next to his twin. Being sure not to catch his younger brother's eye, he turned swiftly and walked away in no particular direction. The demon wouldn't be eating today.

It wasn't long until the bell rang. Lessons resumed.

Rin's final lesson was PE. The boys and girls were split up for activities and joined with two other classes to boost the numbers. It had been a while since Rin had been allowed to do PE because of a previous incident involving a cricket ball and a teacher who had been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Rin had swung at the ball and hit the teacher accidentally. Even if it was an accident, the teacher involved insisted that he'd be punished.

The male students ventured to the changing room. Rin took is place at the corner of a bench away from prying eyes, whilst the others gave him a wide birth. The demon was used to it. He understood that he was scary. With practiced ease, Rin removed his shirt and trousers without revealing his tail. Even though he knew that no one else could probably see it anyway, it was safer to not tempt fate and be discovered. He placed one leg, then the other into his tracksuit bottoms and pulled it up to the waist, taking a moment to tuck his tail into the fabric.

When Rin reached out to get his polo shirt his fingers couldn't find it. His eyes scanned the room and eventually found it on the floor by the entrance. He had dropped on the way in.

Thinking nothing of it, Rin walked to the opposite side of the changing room, bent down, and retrieved his trampled shirt. He felt a prickly sensation between his shoulders. A few of the students stopped their idle chatter and stared at him as he walked passed with wide eyes. The young demon didn't notice. He was used to being stared at constantly by the exorcists and esquires that occupied his after school training. So much so that he had learnt it was better to disregard it completely or risk an unfavourable situation. Eventually he no longer felt their glares burn into his skin.

But this time the stares were comprised of a different kind of disgust. It wasn't at him. It was for him. Rin lifted his arms and pulled the edges of the dirty polo over is arms. His ribcage lifted and became more prominent as he reached upwards. A couple of late-comers stood at the doorway. Rin knew them both by the names 'Ryuji Suguro' or 'Bon' to this friends, and 'Konekomaru Miwa'. The also normally had another friend with them however, he was not in the same class. He let the fabric drop loosely around his torso and stepped backwards a few paces to let them through. The rest of the class exited via the door to the field.

Suguro and Konekomaru studied exorcism with him as exwires. The lessons took place as an extra class after normal school classes had finished. At one time the exwires had got on well. But that changed quickly after they found out that he was the product of the Devils meddling with human life. It was to be expected. What happened next was not.

Suguro grabbed him by the collar and pushed him to the wall. The demon didn't struggle from his grasp. He had learnt that these confrontations lasted half as long if he took every word and every punch. Suguro started with a firm hit to the face. As Rin wavered to the side slightly, Suguro steadied him and pinned him back n place.

"Idiot! You look like a starved rat. Don't you ever eat?"

Suguro's hand shook and loosened from the collar. Rin had been eating, but not enough. Any food that was consumed was instantly digested and used up. As a result, he kept getting thinner. It was worse when he exorcised. It burned off the little fat he had left. His demon body was like a parasite that demanded constant sustenance, of which he refused to give. Suguro tugged on Rin's baggy shirt. The demon complied and removed it.

Both human esquires inspected him. Konekomaru remained at a safe-ish distance, whilst Suguro stood close enough to prod him if needed. Rin took the time to inspect himself for the first time in the last month. He knew that his crazy metabolism was taking a toll on his body. He hadn't realised how much. Every rib clung to the thin layer of skin like cling film. The corners of his pelvis bulged in contrast to his overly skinny waist. The shoulders were so bony that, if the tiny build-up of muscle from training had not been there, the joint onto the arm would be visible. It wasn't a pretty sight for any onlooker.

On processing this, Rin suddenly felt very self-conscious. He put his shirt back on and strolled out to the field before the exorcists in training could stop him. This was the exact reason why he had not let Yukio see him when changing. He couldn't stand those accusing, pitying looks from the people around him. They made him feel like a wounded animal.

The outdoor activity for that day was tennis. Rin tried to be as gentle as he could with the rackets when hitting the ball over the net. His hard work paid off. He had been able to play a couple of decent games without incident. Even the sports coach was surprised, though he put it down to Rin learning his lesson after hitting the teacher a few weeks prior.

The bell finally rang to signify the end of the school day. Rin ran back to the changing room to get his bag and clothes, and rushed out to find somewhere private to get changed. He didn't want a repeat of what had happened earlier. His back had begin to ache a little and sought relief. The demon wound up in the abandoned dorm. He took the chance to have a quick shower. Once he was back in his uniform, Rin went to the kitchen to get the lunch that had been meant for Yukio at lunchtime. It needed eating so Rin ate it.

At 4:52, the demon left for the extra classes taught be none other than his little brother. He sat at the back of the room with a line of chairs separating him from the other students. Suguro and Konekomaru were there, along with their other childhood friend, Renzo Shima, a pretty blond girl called Shiemi Moriyama and another girl named Izumo Kamiki. Another handful of students seated in a huddle. There were normally a few others, however they currently had class activities.

Yukio eyed his brother during the course of his lecture to make sure that he was paying attention. Listening in class to one person talking and not much else was not Rin's strong point. But this particular lecture focused on demons classes and hierarchy, and how the abilities and characteristics defined where in this system they came.

"Today we will be covering the new class system. The old system was scrapped after more in-depth research into demon attributes. Like in the old system, there are certain types of demons that can be grouped together. For example, poltergeists, phantoms and ghosts are 'ghoul' type. These groups are ranked generally in classes one to twelve. Does anyone know any demons that fall under the twelfth category?"

Rin watched the dark-haired Kamiki calmly put her hand up.

"Yes Kamiki?"

She stood up at her desk with a plain expression.

"'Dusts', 'noise', and soot demons like ..." Rin tuned out to her answer. There was a very interesting bug that had crawled up his desk.

"Very good Kamiki. The ranks start from the most basic forms of demon and increase in proportion to intelligence, power, sentience, ability and form. Inside each group they're in, there is another ranking system from 'S' to 'E'. These rankings may or may not fall into the same general rank that the group does as a whole. Vampires are a good example. Pure-blooded vampires are S-Rank and bitten humans or 'fledglings' are D-Rank. If a human is consumed by their thirst to the point where they are no longer sentient, they become E-Rank. The group is generally placed under categories 4-5, however Pure-bloods are category 3 and E-Ranks are category 7. This is mainly down to their intelligence and ability."

Yukio pauses a moment to let the information sink in then looked at this twin as if analysing a verse of text for errors. He decided to see if he was truly paying attention.

"Rin, can you give an example of a 'cross category'?"

The elder twin looked briefly like a rabbit caught in the headlights. He stood up.

"Charmers. The group 'charms' humans to do their bidding or to feed."

Yukio nodded. "Continue".

"Um...Charmers are generally pretty or have hypnotic voices. Some are known to feed from their victims like vampires do, just not always blood."

"Like?"

"Like...uh...Lamias. They charm the young males to do what they want then drink their blood like vampires do. And succubi...pleasure humans and feed on their...'lust'."

"And sirens?"

"Bird demons that look similar to harpies. They are known to lure sailors to their deaths and feed the on despair of the others."

"Good. Well done Rin."

Rin sighed with relief and sat down.

"Your assignment for this week is to complete a report on one specific demon category. As you leave class, please remember to take one of the folded papers on my desk. They contain the category that you will be writing about."

And class ended. Rin hung back and waited, as always, for the room to empty. Yukio and Suguro were the only ones left. Suguro watched him walk to the door. As he started on his way, the older twin was stopped by the younger.

"Rin...Mephisto needs to see you."

He didn't want to go. Meetings with the headmaster normally served as warnings or conditions to how he lived, and more importantly, his fate with the Vatican. There was no doubt in his mind now to what would be said in the demon's office. But still Rin went. Alone.


	4. Chapter 3: Waiting

Waiting

Yukio walked to the dorm shared with his brother. He waited. He showered. He changed. He completed his homework. He waited. He marked his pupils work. He fed Kuro. He waited. Night stole the sun's final light for the day. Still Rin did not come home. It was strange for Mephisto to keep him this late.

The human twin sat at the table near the kitchen. Rin liked the kitchen. Nowadays it was the only place Rin smiled. Granted, his grades were better, and he didn't cause nearly as much trouble as he used to. But something dead and defeated replaced the life that once sparkled in his eyes. He had changed. At first, Yukio had treated it like a breath of fresh air. He had no real reason to worry about him any more. In his studies, his brother had been doing his best; put in every effort. And it paid off. Finally he could be trusted with tasks that he previously had no hope of completing. Rin was capable and reliable. It was only now that he realised that the change in his brother was scaring him.

Rin had lost his confidence, his spark, his goofy smile.

Yukio leaned forward and rested his arms on the table. He hadn't known how bad things had gotten until this afternoon. Suguro had come up to him after his lesson was over and asked if Rin had been eating right. It disturbed him. He recalled his older brother giving him food at lunch. It didn't cross his mind that it was originally supposed to be Rin's and not his. Had he even eaten today? Yukio wasn't at the dorms this morning so he hadn't actually seen Rin have breakfast.

He clenched his palms together tightly and let his head drop onto the hard, wooden surface. Time passed slowly. Kuro leapt onto the table and pawed at Yukio's head. The younger twin shifted slightly to see the cat watching him unhappily.

"I've fed you already, Kuro."

The black ball of fur meowed. His brother would be able to understand what he was saying. Yukio couldn't. He could only guess. Being able to hear the language of a demon was probably one of the only useful things that had come out of Rin's transformation it seemed. The older twin had helped a great deal when the cat sídhe reeked havoc on finding out that his previous master, Shiro, had died. Rin managed to stop him without violence against the grieving cat and, as a result, gained a familiar.

"I can't understand you Kuro. I'm not like Rin."

Kuro nudged his cheek.

"What is it?"

The cat jumped off of the table and ran to the door. He then sat impatiently, flicking his tail.

"You're waiting for Rin?"

Kuro turned to Yukio and meowed.

He'd had enough. Just what was taking his brother so long? He got up and proceeded to Mephisto's office. Outside was very dark. Chalky yellow light from overhanging lamps lit up the path ahead. A number of the corridors were closed off now that school activity had ended for the day. The classrooms were silent and the hallways led on into black shadows.

On sight of the headmaster's office, Yukio stopped abruptly. It was possible that his brother had already left; in which case, this little visit would do nothing but embarrass him in front of his superior. But at the same time, Rin could have also been in there. With this in mind, Yukio walked up to the large double-doors and took a small breath. His fingers brushed the handle as if he was touching glass. The he heard voices from inside. The first belonging to his brother.

"Does he know", Rins voice rang.

"This information hasn't been made public yet. It is known only amongst a very few in the Grigori. Even if you are related, I doubt that this information has reached his ears as of yet."

"Yukio. What should I tell him?"

"I'd hold off for now. It still needs verifying."

"...He still deserves to know."

Clumpy footsteps made their way to the door. Yukio backed up onto the wall so that he would be hidden if they were opened. This was not a conversation intended for him, but he felt the need to overhear as much as he could.

"Remember, Rin. The date is scheduled for next week. Use your time wisely."

The door opened a fraction.

"Yukio. I'm sorry if I kept you waiting."

Yukio had been discovered easily. Though, it was to be expected with Rin's heightened senses.

"You took a lot longer than I was expecting", he replied.

"Um listen... My execution date was brought forward.

"What? What about your chance to prove yourself? The higher ups said you would be in the clear if you passed the exorcist exam next month."

"They lied."

"But..."

"They lied, Yukio."

The younger twin drew a long breath as he let the news settle.

"When is it?" he asked.

"Next week."

Yukio crumpled in on himself. He backed up against the wall and slid down to the floor in shock.

"I'm sorry little brother...for being a burden to you all this time. I wanted to support and protect you like I used to back when we were kids. But lately it's been the other way around. Look, I suppose now is as good a time as any to give you this." He grabbed the long bag on his back that kept the sword of which held the seal to his demon half. Then Rin handed it to his brother.

"I'm not allowed to have it any more. I want you to take it."

Yukio brought his hands to his face and shook his head violently. His voice trembled with hysterics.

"No Rin, I won't take it. I don't want it. Rin. Please don't make me take it. I can't... I'll never..."

The young demon's eyes closed tightly and his hands clenched into fists.

"I understand", Rin stated with no emotion. He walked back into the office to give his sword to Mephisto. He returned, swiftly, and knelt in-front of Yukio.

"You only have to wait a little while longer, then you won't have to babysit me any more. You'll be rid of another demon without having to lift a finger." His face wore a sad, accepting smile.

The younger swallowed and made the attempt to speak but all he could muster was a few mouthed words and squeaks. As Rin got up to leave he choked down a sob. He was leaving him. His only family was leaving him.


	5. Chapter 4: Acceptance and truths

Acceptance and truths

Rin sat on his bed in acceptance. Nothing had really changed except that the date of his execution was now made known. One week left. That was what Mephisto had said. Then there was that other thing he had mentioned in their earlier meeting. But what was a rumour compared to the stack of evidence that everyone had piled against him. Even if what he had been told was true, there was no guarantee that it would be able to 'bail' him. Rin didn't get his hopes up.

Instead, he began to draw up a list on what he could do with the remaining time that he had left. The longer and harder he thought about it, though, the more he came to realise the limits to what he could do. Even simple objectives such as visiting Father Shiro's grave would be difficult to do because of the restrictions he was under.

He chose two main objectives to fulfil before the week was up.

1. Find someone to care for Kuro. He had been a loyal friend and familiar since they had first met. It was his responsibility to make sure the black cat demon would not fall into the same state that he did after Shiro died. If possible, his new master should be kind and understanding. Rin had once thought of his brother looking after him in his stead, but it would be understandable for his brother to refuse for any number of reasons. He would need to find someone willing.

2. Find and pack away all of his possessions. There wasn't much that Rin owned, but what did belong to him was scattered around his and Yukio's room: Clothes, comics, stationary, school books. Leaving them to Yukio to clear up later after he was gone just wouldn't be right. His things would be packed in a couple of cardboard boxes, ready to be burned or what ever it was that the Grigori had decided to do with everything that belonged to the devil's son.

Rin refused to die with regret in his heart. Somehow he would repair some of the damage done to his friends by knowing him. He wanted to laugh and lark about with the esquires like he used to before the truth had been known, though he knew hat that was impossible. He recognised now that he had been, quite literally, the walking dead for the past month. This had to change at the very least. His remaining days would be somewhat happier.

He sighed and stood up. It had gotten quite late and he was pretty sure that neither he, nor his brother, had eaten. Maybe a good meal would cheer him up a bit. Towards the kitchen he went; down the stairs, and to the cupboards and fridge. He settled on making something quick and easy.

When his brother slumped in, the food was readily set on the table. Yukio's eyes were red and puffy from crying. They ate quietly until the younger spoke up.

"I'm sorry Rin. I didn't mean what I said."

Rin took a deep breath, abandoned his chicken, walked around to the other side of the table, and hugged him, gently. Yukio sat still for a while, then pushed into his older brother with new tears threatening to spill. A sad smile graced Rin's lips. He tightened his grip and held his twin firmly.

"Sorry Rin."

"Shhh..." He rocked Yukio softly back and forth. Both took comfort in each others warmth. Like this, they remained for a few long minutes.

"Okay, Yukio, food's getting cold."

The youngest twin sniffed. "Yeah, you're right."

Both returned their attention to the lukewarm chicken and mash. Rin grumbled comically.

"Should I warm it back up?"

Yukio looked up from his own meal. "Definitely."

Rin lifted the brother's plate from the table with one hand and held his plate with the other. As he turned around to walk around the counter, he felt a tug on his shirt.

"Wait. I want you to use your flames."

The older brother looked at his younger like he was crazy.

"But you hate it when I don't act human."

"Your demon side is as much a part of you as your human side. I was too scared of how it would change you and affect everyone else to admit it till now. I want to see them."

"Okay. But they won't do much good. It would be better to heat our food the traditional way."

"Don't worry. I know you can control them. I've watched you practising."

"You've watched me?"

Yukio nodded. Rin sighed.

"Control isn't the problem."

"Then what is it?"

"Well, you know how I am able to wear my flames without getting hurt? I thought it was because I was resistant to them or that my body had physically changed to accommodate them. They always felt warm but not hot. I never really questioned it till last month."

"What happened?"

"Candles. My flames never burned me so I thought nothing of it when Shura started this exercise where I had to attach the flame from he candle to my hand. With my own flames it was fine, but then she asked me to do it with ones she had lit herself."

Rin placed the plates on the counter, undid the button on his left cuff and rolled the sleeve up to reveal a small bandage. He had kept it hidden behind a sports wrist band whenever there was a chance of someone seeing it.

"Turns out that, even though I do have a higher tolerance for heat than humans, I can still get burnt. My flames are a lot colder than they look."

"Your burn?"

"Hasn't healed yet. Shura said it's healing at the same rate as a human."

"So...potentially your power can't actually hurt anyone."

"Only demons."

"What about those times that you set fire to objects. You managed to hurt people before. Why not now?"

I asked the same thing to Mephisto. He said something about the energy building up in my body for fifteen years may have caused it to go out of control. Now that the excess energy has gone and I can control my power, my flames are acting as they should. Not that it matters."

Yukio let his brother go about warming up their food again. He watched from the entryway so that he wouldn't get in his way.

"Do the Vatican know?"

"...No. There would be no point to them I'm still the son of Satan, dangerous or not."

Rin shrugged and smiled. "At least now I know that I'm no longer a danger to anyone. That's enough."

The room became silent. Once the food was heated, both human and demon walked to the table and retook their seats.

"Rin?"

"Uh huh?"

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I kinda expected it...just not so soon, you know?"

"No. I meant your health. You're looking a bit pale and your ribs are kinda visible through your shirt."

It was true. Though in normal circumstance nothing appeared out of the ordinary, when Rin slouched, the material of his shirt pulled around the small ridges of his rib cage. Rin wrapped his arms around himself.

"Suguro talked to you." It wasn't a question.

"Yes. I had noticed before but I never really registered it. The more I think about it, the more I realise that I didn't want to see it. Maybe that's the reason why I didn't question what I was seeing. I guess I needed for someone to say it."

His older brother looked at him and sighed.

"My body has gone into overdrive. I eat and I'm still hungry. No-matter how much I eat I am never fully sated" He took a bite of chicken.

"How long has this been going on?"

"I guess since this whole demon thing started. But it didn't get too bad until earlier this month."

A small patter of tiny feet sounded from the doorway. Then Kuro came into view. The cat familiar meowed a hello and leapt onto the table. Yukio wasn't impressed with him. He told the little demon off for being on the wooden surface when they were eating. Rin grinned when Kuro dodged his brother's manoeuvre to encourage him away from his current perch. The cat turned towards his master and tilted his head.

"Don't worry buddy. I saved a bit for you", he answered.

The familiar trotted towards him and nudged his arm. Rin laughed and got up.

"Okay. I'll get it for you."

Kuro meowed. Both demons raced each other to the kitchen.

Yukio called at Rin, "Don't give him too much! I've already fed him!"

"Okay!" Rin sang.


	6. Chapter 5: Dreams and Nightmares

Dreams and Nightmares

The time was 11:32 pm. Yukio lay awake in his bed with Rin asleep in the bed opposite. His older brother had insisted in finishing his school work before going to bed. He had got through most of it before he dozed off at the desk. Yukio had helped him to bed and pulled the covers over him. Kuro slept soundly on the pillow next to his head.

In truth, he wondered how Rin could sleep so easily. His life would end in a matter of days and there was no way to prevent it. A band on the base of Rin's tail prevented him from getting too far from the school without Mephisto's permission. It tracked and hurt him when activated. And his brother had been right when he had said that telling the Vatican that he was harmless was meaningless.

Ideas swarmed his mind of what they would do to Rin before the execution. Would he be tortured. It was probable. On the day of the first trial a few months prior, Rin had been subjected to torture in the actual court room. His leg had been butchered through with a sword to keep him in place when he was forced to the ground and beaten. It had been a clean cut and healed quickly thanks to Rin's healing abilities but nothing justified the attack, even if he was demon spawn.

Yukio mentally slapped himself.

"...even if he IS demon spawn", he muttered.

Yukio rolled over to lie on his front and buried his head in his pillow. With his glasses off his eyes were out of focus. This was causing a throbbing behind and between the eyes. His brother had accepted his fast coming death but he hadn't.

As Yukio began to drop off, Rin dreamed.

Rin was standing in an entryway. Father Fujimoto stood in the centre of the church isle back at home. Yukio was sat on one of the pews near the front with some luggage. The father faced Rin with a smile and beckoned him with outstretched arms. The demon needn't be told twice. He ran towards his deceased guardian and latched onto him desperately.

"What's brought this on?" the Father chuckled.

Rin grip on Shiro's dark coat tightened. "Nothing, old man. I'm just glad to see you."

"I'm glad to see you too." He hit Rin hard on the head. "But don't think that's going to get you out of trouble. The shop keeper called about the mess you made at the supermarket. Honestly...you need to learn to control yourself."

Rin rubbed at a bruise forming on his scalp. "The supermarket? That was ages ago."

"I know. Seriously kiddo, there was no need disappear for two days. Everyone here was worried sick! Yukio even stayed behind a few days from moving to the dorms to make sure you where okay."

"There's no need to care for a demon like me."

Father Fujimoto placed his hands on Rin's shoulders.

"You are not a demon. Don't think that."

Rin lifted his hand to his left ear. It wasn't pointed or long or angular. His cartilage made a smooth arch from the base, over the tip, and ending at the lobe. With his mind he tried to move his tail and found it was gone. He risked sweeping his tongue over his teeth. The fangs and pointed teeth were small and blunt. In conclusion, for now in this twisted dream or reality, he was human.

It felt wrong for him to be tempted by this version of reality, but Rin couldn't resist the chance to see and talk to his dead loved one again. So when Shiro sat next to Yukio, Rin followed without question. His younger brother was reading through a textbook.

"Where were you, brother?"

"In another world...", Rin said sarcastically.

The younger brother checked his watch. "It's time."

Yukio sighed. Suddenly his face appeared a couple of inches away from Rin's own. Yukio's eyes were deep pools that seemed to stretch through a gaping black hole.

"Wake up."

* * *

><p>Darkness.<p>

There was only darkness.

Then a flash of blue. The light briefly showed a circle of faceless, cloaked figures.

Darkness again.

There was something cold and hard. It restricted movement.

The sound of leather being pulled in someone's hand. And a smack on skin.

Chains rattled and something hot and wet dripped to the ground.

There was no pain.

Only acceptance.

And Yukio loathed it. The younger twin had become aware of himself within this twisted reality. His brother stood chained to a crude pyre, where he was beaten and whipped repeatedly. When the pain became too much for him to contain, fire shot outwards from his body in short, bright died down as he became more and more tired. Rin's throat rasped and strained with each breath.

This torture was unjustified blame inflicted on his innocent brother done out of pure spite. A man offered his whip to Yukio. The beating stopped momentarily.

"You are human, yet you are also born from the same evil that created this monster. This is the time to prove yourself. Pick your side."

The younger twin looked at his brothers limp body and took the torture weapon. His body moved on it's own to stand three metres away from the post.

"Do it!"

His hands shook as he lifted the handle. His brother already hung half-dead from his constraints.

"Now boy!"

He struck his brother as lightly as he could manage. The body whimpered but didn't move.

"Again!"

Yukio did it again.

"Harder!"

Tears stung his eyes. He didn't want to be doing this, but for some reason he couldn't control himself. Yukio's body was not listening to him and his consciousness was trapped inside. His flicks with the whip turned into lashes. Each left a new mark of broken, oozing skin. The bloody lump attached to the pyre moaned between every hit and screamed when flesh was ripped from Bone.

Yukio saw one lash expose the spine.

The spell broke as he vomited.

"You've done well, boy", an older, hooded man stood forward. "To turn on your only family is not always easy".

Yukio's breath caught in his throat. He swallowed and forced air into his lungs. The man glided to the youngest of the twins and pulled him into his arms. Confused and a little angry, Yukio peered upwards to see under the hood. The old man complied and pushed it back so that his face was visible. The younger struggled out of his grasp and backed up. He felt embarrassed and ashamed. In front of him was none other than Father Shiro Fujimoto, the man that had raised both Rin and himself.

"This is a dream", Yukio assured himself. "There is no way that he can be here".

But that didn't make what he was seeing any less real. So he ran to Rin and removed what he could of the bindings. The older brother collapsed to the floor with a thud. Shiro closed the space between them once again. His arm was outstretched towards the twins. Yukio tore his gaze from his suffering brother to the hand of his guardian. In it was a gun with his grip on the barrel. He offered it to him.

"Take it, Yukio."

Rin used his good arm to prop himself up slightly. He didn't speak. Just stared. The younger noticed the movement next to him and reached towards his shoulder. Rin didn't protest so he touched him in comfort and reassurance. Yukio's thumb circled his brothers collar Bone where a small bruise had formed. As a doctor class exorcist, he recognised it as a reaction to an injection. It probably was the reason for his slowed healing.

"Why do I need the gun?"

"It's not for you. It's for him." Shiro pointed at the older twin.

"No".

"They will burn him. They will burn him until he is within an inch of his life, and pull at his limbs till they rip off like a piece of tough meat. Then they will vertically slice his belly and remove his organs one by one. His guts will spill out and coat the execution site in his blood. There, they will finally give him the mercy of death. Do you not think that he would rather die swiftly by your hand?"

"... I don't know", Yukio whispered. His grip on Rin tightened slightly.

"Yukio?" The older brother managed.

The younger turned to face him and listened to his brother's words.

"It's your choice, Yukio", Rin whispered.


	7. Chapter 6: Weakness

Weakness

Rin's eyes opened. Morning's early light had begun exploring the dim room. The first thing he noticed was the sound of gasping and moaning beside him. He got up and ran to his brother who was covered in cold sweat and shaking uncontrollably. Rin firmly took hold of Yukio and called out to him. Yukio suddenly bolted upright. His eyes were wide and his pupils dilated. Without a moments notice, he launched himself at Rin and checked him over for injuries.

"Yukio?"

"It was just a dream", he declared quietly. Yukio fell backwards deliberately in relief. His arm moved to cover his eyes. "...Just a dream".

Rin kneeled next to the bed.

"You wanna talk about it?"

His little brother shook his head.

Rin sighed and got up. His back was sore from sleeping awkwardly. He quickly got into his shirt and trousers before leaving to make breakfast. At the table, Yukio kept stealing glances at him. Rin tried to ignore them. Whatever this brother had dreamed about must have really scared him. Yukio always acted skittish after a bad nightmare; though it had been a few years since he had done this last.

When it was time to leave for school, the younger tailed the older like he did as a child. Normally they would go their separate ways, mainly because Rin didn't want to ruin his brother's reputation, however today was different. Yukio looked awful. His face was flushed of all colour. His skin was pale and clammy. And, if Rin was being honest to himself, he looked like he was going to pass out.

Not that this meant that he was feeling at 100% top condition either. His ears still hurt from yesterday and his body was heavy from sleep.

"You okay, bro?" Rin asked.

In response, Yukio quickened his pace to walk ahead. "I'm fine".

And he was through most of the school day. Lessons flew by. Rin handed in his English homework on time for once and got a rather confused look from the teacher. The Geography teacher decided to have the class outside; her pupils made the most of it. Catering was the last lesson. It was one of Rin's favourites.

Then the after school class came. Mr Tsubaki taught today's practical class. The esquires gathered around the teacher and listened intently. Shiemi twiddled her thumbs. Practical lessons weren't her best. She was slow and not very athletic. Her knowledge of remedies and plants could, in time, challenge the top healers, and she was a tamer with the ability to summon a baby greenman which could provide her with any plant or herb she would need, however that was where the list ended. She was shy, nervous, unsure, and a bit dim. But that didn't stop the boys from sneaking a glance at her when she wasn't looking. Though not exactly skinny, Shiemi was attractive. A cute bob of blonde hair framed her pretty, rounded face. And according to the school's unofficial 'Girl Pursuit Club', she had the 'hottest curves' out of all the girls on campus.

Suguro's eyes wondered about, trying to locate the subject of the day. It was about that time that Yukio joined he group with Rin in tow. Rin was hardly ever allowed to attend the practicals. Normally he was given something else to do with controlling his power or using his sword. Because Kurikara had been confiscated, he couldn't do that any more. And seeing as he was pretty much useless with his powers sealed, Yukio had convinced Mr Tsubaki to include him in his class.

Suguro kissed his teeth in disgust.

Mr cleared his throat to get the attention of his students. "When attacking and exorcising a demon it is important to know their week spot. Most of what you have been learning in Madam Mystère's class will help you combat particular individuals with verses, however, normally exorcism is not so easy in practice. If a verse were to fail or be unknown how else can they be stopped? Can each of you give an example?"

Suguro spoke up first. "Holy water. Most demons can be weakened with it. There are different concentrations that can be used for higher levelled demon and barriers. In most circumstances, though, it will not be enough on its own."

Then Kamiki. "Certain types of demon, like ghoul, lunar, and shadow types are weaker in the sun. The light can harm them physically or simply prevent them from using their powers."

And Konekomaru. "Empowered weapons. Some are blessed or socked in holy water for a length of time. People with high endurance to miasma can also use demon weapons with have the ability to corrupt and poison opponents. They can also 'grow' with their wielder and have a high adaptability. Some holy weapons are made to only harm demons, so humans will be unaffected. An example of this is the bullets provided to dragoons."

And Shiemi. "Um...um...loud noises? The ears are more sensitive than ours."

The pupils gave their answers one at a time until the whole class had answered. Then Mr turned to Rin.

"You too", he said. All eyes turned to Rin.

The young demon thought quickly of what to say. There were many things that he was that he was weak to. His tail was by far the most sensitive part of his body. He still got normal illnesses like he used to when he was human. If Yukio was in any danger he would leap into action without regards to any harm that it would bring himself. His brother had talked about something similar in one of his lectures. It was called...

"A focal point or an obsession. Most have an object or habit of their affection. If you put a greenman in a room of steel away from any sort of natural life they can survive but they get scared or sad."

Suguro snorted. "Demons with emotions. What a hoot!"

"Oh yeah! What about Kuro? His focal point became da...Father Fujimoto: when he died Kuro was sad and went crazy."

"No. The seal on him broke, just like it did on you."

"But there wasn't a-"

"How do you know? The only reason why it stopped its rampage was because you're a demon too."

The teacher tried to get between them but was easily shrugged off.

Rin refused to back down. He locked eyes with Suguro and glared with an intensity and spark that had been thought dead in him until now. "What about me then? Do I have emotion?!" His hands shook. "Do I have emotion?" he repeated.

"Tch. What kind of question is that. Isn't that much obvious to you or do I need to spell it out?"

Rin's head dropped. Suguro's words hurt him. Not only had he been insulted, but his familiar and, indirectly, his adoptive father also. He stormed off without saying another word. No one followed.

The class was dismissed quickly and most of the pupils dispersed.

Surprisingly, it was Konekomaru who spoke next. He looked uncomfortable with the situation. "Kuro likes it when I tickle him behind the ears and play with him. I think he does have feelings."

"That's not what I meant when I said that", Suguro answered. "Haven't you noticed? This is the first time in weeks that that idiot has actually acted like his old self."

"So you were provoking him?" Kamiki pointed out. "Because that looked like bullying to me."

"What?"

"You don't understand because you're not a Tamer. The relationship between master and familiar differs, but the strength of the Bond is very real. Insulting a familiar is like swearing at a member of their family. Do you understand?"

"It's more than that", Yukio cut in. The rest of the class turned to face him. They had assumed that he had gone after his brother. "Kuro used to belong to Shiro Fujimoto, the previous paladin."

"And?"

"He raised Yuki and Rin", Shiemi finished. He had mentioned that when they had first found out that their classmate was a demon, though Shiemi had known several years prior thanks to her mother's shop

Yukio spoke again. "To Rin, Kuro is a small piece of him that was left behind."

Suguro took a moment to process this.

"...Shit", he murmured, then took off in the same direction as Rin. The rest of the group taddled behind.


	8. Chapter 7: Roof

Roof

Rin sat cross-legged on the roof of the abandoned dorm. His tail hung lifelessly at his side. Kuro padded up to him and planted himself in his master's lap.

"Are you okay?"

The demon child petted his familiar's head. Hearing Kuro's thoughts comforted him somewhat.

"Yeah", he sighed.

The little cat demon's fur was soft and drifted slightly between the cracks in his master's fingers. Kuro closed his eyes and let slip a low purr. Sometimes Rin needed some time to relax and forget everything. It was understandable. Kuro also enjoyed this pastime and indulged in it as much as possible. Though, the cat had been woken and shooed on a great number of occasions. It seemed that not every one was as appreciative of the more simple joys in life.

Rin twisted a few strands of fur together as his mind wondered. This provoked an irritated ear flick from the ball of black fluff. The sun was beginning to set. Both master and familiar bathed in the last of the day's warmth. The sky was lit up in yellows, oranges, and pinks. Today marked the end of the fifth month since Rin's demon half had awakened.

And now he had six days left.

"Kuro? Have you made any friends here?"

"You're my friend."

He smiled. "I meant other than me."

Kuro thought. "Yukio gives me cat nip wine. But he also gets angry when I sit on the table."

"What about Shiemi?" Despite being scared of Rin, Shiemi had a good heart and seemed to care for both her own familiar and Kuro.

"She chases me everywhere and tries to pick me up."

Rin nodded.

"I like baldy and eyebrows. They play with me."

The demon hybrid smirked at the nicknames that he himself used to use for Konekamaru and Kamiki. Kuro seemed to prefer these nicknames to their real ones. But he also wondered why these particular esquires would willingly be nice to his familiar. It was a bit of a surprise. Kamaki always came across as a straight-forward, stern person. Konekomaru on the other hand, was smart but timid, scared of all demons.

"What do they do?"

"Baldy always has something on him to play with. Yesterday he had long-grass and string. Eyebrows plays with me when no-one else is near, and she gives me food."

Rin was a little annoyed about the food, but he was satisfied that his familiar wouldn't be alone when he was gone. Silence fell once more. The sun hung lower in the sky.

Both demons ears twitched at the sound of footsteps clanging up the stairs to the roof. When the door opened Rin didn't turn around. He couldn't face anyone at the moment. Kuro peeked around from where he was nested on his master's lap.

"Rin", Suguro's voice called from where he stood a few metres away.

"Did you have an argument?" Kuro asked.

"...yeah".

Suguro scraped his foot on the concrete. "Look. I'm sorry, okay? I didn't think what I said would affect you so badly."

The demon hybrid remained silent and flicked his tail dismissively. After a while the wind picked up a little. It wisped through his already tangled hair. His familiar didn't enjoy the sudden blast of cold air. He got up, trotted towards the group of esquires and went through the door, inside.

"I'm not upset. I 'don't have feelings' right? So how can I?"

"I took it back, idiot. I had no idea that you would take what I said like that."

Rin thought. If apologies fixed everything, he wouldn't be in this mess. Roster-head Suguro and the others didn't seem to know about his current situation and he wanted to keep it that way. He didn't want to leave this world on a bad note either. Should he accept Suguro's apology? With five more days left until his execution, he wouldn't have to endure the torment of his ex-friends for too much longer. It would be better to leave without animosity.

The demon tugged on his fringe. He really needed a haircut; that's what his brother had told him. He kept it clean and, despite its appearance, he had brushed it. His hair type was the problem. It was frizzy and took on a life of its own. Yukio never had this problem. Although they were twins, they were not identical. Maybe that was for the best.

"Okay", Rin finally relented as he pulled at a split-end.

Suguro nodded. The almost forgotten group of friends behind him sighed in relief. For reasons that Rin could not fathom, though, Suguro took this as a sign to get closer and comfort him. Suguro actually touched him without the intention to harm or confront the young demon. He was crouched down behind him with his hand on Rin's bony shoulder.

Suguro squirmed. "Seriously, when was the last time you ate?"

"Lunch time".

Suguro's eyes widened. Luckily, Yukio decided to expand on Rin's pathetic answer before his student stared barking up more questions.

"It's not him eating that's the problem. It's his metabolism."

"So it's a demon thing?"

Yukio nodded.

"Then let's go eat!" Shiemi declared out of the blue. Everyone, even Rin, turned to look at the bubbly blonde with 'you ruined the moment' stares. Still, they all universally agreed that food was a good idea. Rin smirked as his brother pulled him up. He would agree to go along with them, maybe.


	9. Chapter 8: Baldy

Baldy

Konekomaru wouldn't have said that he was entirely comfortable with being within the five metres of distance that he liked to keep between him and Rin at all times. The familiars were okay he supposed. Ni, Shiemi's familiar, and Kuro, the familiar of the last paladin, he didn't mind. In truth, Ni was actually quite cute. He reminded Konekomaru of a child's toy or a fairy. Though, a fairy was kind of accurate if he thought about it. Ni was small, green and leafy. He liked to be around other greenmen like him and all sorts of plants. That was probably the reason that Ni liked Shiemi so much. She spent nearly all of her time in her garden at home and was very passionate about anything that grows in the soil. Greenmen also had the advantage of being one of the few species tolerated and accepted by exorcists due to their natural contribution to the ecosystem.

Kuro was another matter. Konekomaru had always liked cats. They were soft and sweet and fluffy and independent. They had the advantage over dogs in his eyes because cats could look after themselves. You didn't need to take them for walks and the absolute worst that they could normally do to a human is make tiny, paper thin scratches on the skin. Kuro wasn't your average cat. He understood that he was a cat demon; a cat sith. But if the previous paladin himself owned him and allowed him near humans then surely he was good. Apart from the little knubbs on top of his head and the second tail, Kuro seemed like a normal cat. He slept in the sun and chased mice. He played with feathers and string. He had a preference to fish.

Konekomaru also knew of the cat's second form. Kuro could grow to the size of a small house when he felt threatened. On first learning this, he avoided the cat like the plague. It scared him. The little, adorable animal could be large enough to swallow him in one gulp. Now though, he can accept it. If anything, it meant that the Kuro could protect himself. It had happened on a couple of occasions, where the cat demon had fought to aid the exorcists in an attack. Not once had he harmed them. Konekomaru wasn't entirely comfortable with his other form, but he wasn't scared of him.

And then there was Rin. Once a friend, now no more. During the time that the class of esquires had bonded with him before revealing his darker nature he was nice; a little rough, but nice. This demon was foul and rabid and dangerous. He had lost control on a number of occasions and ran rampant. It was shocking that no-one had been killed by him yet. And the worst thing about him more than everything else added together was his blue flames. These were the same flames that had killed his family. Konekomaru had lost both of his parents to the Devil's flames many years ago. And Rin was the Devil's creation.

How could anyone allow him to exist?

Konekomaru lifted his head and spotted Shiemi and Kamiki making pancakes on the buffet grill. Shima had propped himself backwards on a chair and was laughing at their forth or fifth failed attempt. Shiemi appeared to be taking it within her stride, however Kamiki had never been one to take being laughed at without some sort of verbal retaliation. She was currently shouting several strings of curses at Shima whilst preventing Shiemi from putting beetroot into the new batch of batter.

Suguro sat behind a nearby table with Paku, Kamiki's old friend and former esquire, who had been invited to tag along. Paku was pretty and kind like Shiemi and used to be part of the esquire class before quitting. She had said that it was too much for her.

His eyes shifted around the group. He found his teacher and classmate, Yukio, standing in a distant corner with his older twin. They seemed disengaged from the rest of his friends. To Koneko, the twins were as different as chalk and cheese, but despite that they had stuck together like they were joined at the hip when they had first started attending the school. Only recently it seemed that they were purposely avoiding each other. Yet, now they stood side by side. A silent void surrounded them pushing others away.

Konekomaru had never had a problem with Yukio. On the contrary, he felt safer when being with him. It was especially reassuring when Rin was around. Nowadays, Rin never disobeyed his younger brother. If Yukio ordered Rin to jump off a bridge, he would do it.

Actually, that seemed a little sad.

Koneko turned his attention back to the girls and jogged over. Kamiki had taken over the main bulk of the cooking whilst Shiemi was taking a back seat. Suguro was standing now and scratching his temple. The food didn't seem to be progressing the way that they had hoped.

Something warm and fluffy brushed across Konekomaru's leg. He bent down to pet the newly appeared demon cat. Kuro arched his back into the welcoming hand. It seemed that he was hungry as well. Kuro normally acted like this when he wanted something.

"Sorry, Kuro. The food isn't done yet."

Kuro meowed and looked at him expectantly. When there was no answer given, the cat sith dashed to the twins. Rin crouched down and began conversing with him, drifting in and out of Japanese and his own lucid tongue. The corners of his mouth showed a hint of an upwards curve.

Suguro's loud call broke Koneko out of his stupor.

"Oi, idiot. Make yourself useful and take over from the girls. At this rate, we won't be eating at all."

He received a well deserved thump from Kamiki around the back of the head, which in turn, earned a growl from Suguro.

"Do you expect me to compliment your crap attempt at pancakes? It will be faster if Rin does it."

"At least I'm sticking to the recipe. I'm not the one putting beetroot and lettuce in the batter", Kamiki retorted.

"Great idea, isn't it? Tasty AND highly nutritious", remarked Shiemi.

Konekomaru gagged.

"I'm not too sure about the 'tasty' part", Rin's voice came from behind.

Koneko stiffened. He didn't want to turn around and confirm what he already knew. The demon was behind him. He wanted to run.

"You okay Koneko? Stomach ache?"

He winced and turned.

"My name is Konekomaru. Don't talk like we're friends."

Rin seemed to shrug it off. Kuro was perched on his shoulder, eating his hair.

The esquires stepped aside to give Rin space to work his magic. He quickly made a new batch of batter. Kamiki stood the closest and looked to be mentally taking notes on the technique he used to beat the eggs and fry the pancakes so that they kept their shape. Rin's narrow fingers held the handle of the pan as he shook it slightly to stop the pancake from sticking. Suguro sat back down with Shima and beckoned the other human esquires over.

Shima looked towards Rin, then to the group. "I don't know about you guys, but I don't know if I'm comfortable with eating that."

Suguro and Kamiki both grunted. Konekomaru agreed with Shima. It could be contaminated or made to not suit human tastes.

Surprisingly, it was Suguro who stuck up for the demon spawn. "Oi, the whole point of this was to get Rin to eat. Have you forgotten?"

They all spared a glance at Rin's frail body. He was serving up the last to the food.

"He's smiling now at least", Kamiki pointed out.

"Yeah, I had almost forgotten what that looked like", replied Yukio who took a seat next to Shiemi. Shiemi was being very quiet. She never liked to talk about Rin. Konekomaru understood. For the time that the esquires were kept in the dark about Rin's heritage, Shiemi had been the closet to him. Shura had offered a bet with some of the students on whether Shiemi would get together with Yukio or Rin. No-one had really been interested in the bet, with the exception of Shima.

Konekomaru had once got on with him as well. It felt awful to learn that his good friend was the son if the King of Hell. It really hurt; like the human Rin that he had known had died and was replaced with a monster. Koneko wondered if that was how Shiemi was feeling. Maybe she was still grieving.

"Food's done", Rin exclaimed to anyone listening.

Shiemi bit her lip when he approached with the food. Only Suguro and Shima looked up at him from where they were sitting. Yukio got up immediately to help carry in tonight dinner.

"Yukio. It's fine. You can sit down with everyone."

"It's faster this way."

Rin sighed and handed him a tray of crapes.

Suguro took one before the tray touched the table and nonchalantly placed half in is mouth, chewed, and swallowed. Everyone watched him expectantly.

"What? It's not poisoned."

"Yeah, but is it edible?" Shima asked.

"I see nothing wrong with it", Kamiki stated taking a second mouthful of her crape.

That was all it took to convince Shima. Konekomaru figured that if three of them were okay with the food then it was fine to eat. He took one hesitantly off the tray and nibbled the edge.

When Rin returned to the table with some cold meat and cheese, he retreated to the counter, choosing to sit on a barstool away from the others. His younger brother got up again and joined him.

"Oh! I really like these pink crapes", Paku squealed. "They taste really nice and look really pretty.

Rin sighed. He turned around briefly to look at the crapes. "There wasn't enough ingredients left so I used Shiemi's batter."

Everyone stopped eating. Konekomaru thought he saw Rin smirk.

"Don't worry, I took out the beetroot. The juices actually make a good natural dye."

Suguro took an unwrapped pancake, spread on a thin layer of chocolate spread, and rolled it into a new crape. Everyone else went back to eating.

"Ouch", Rin muttered. He put his food down and spat out something.

Yukio stopped too. He was staring at the thing in his brother's hand. Suguro walked over to them to look.

"Is that supposed to happen?"

"What is it, Bon?"

"Okumara just lost a tooth."

"Let me see, brother." Yukio ran his hand under his jaw and forced Rin's mouth open. He gaped.

"You have another set coming through. Your new tooth is just about visible.

"Whoopie...", spoke Rin, sarcastically.

Paku giggled. "Remember to put it under your pillow tonight".

"Why would I do that?"

"Oh come on", Kamiki said. "Surely even the son of Satan has heard of the tooth fairy".

"Yeah. 'Course I have. Doesn't mean it's real."

"Oh...", Paku smiled. How do you know?"

"When I was four I caught my old man messing with my pillow. Kuro told me that even he had swapped the teeth for money on occasion."

Paku squeaked. "Aww! Such a good puss puss." Kuro's ears went backwards briefly at the girly referral to himself.

Konekomaru lifted Kuro from the floor and held him in a comfortable position. The demon cat shifted to half sit, half lie in Koneko's arms.

Rin touched his raw gum. He didn't appear too bothered about the missing lump of bone. Suguro did, however.

"Is this normal for demons?"

Yukio shrugged. "It happens to certain species when they reach a certain age. It's been known for demons to get a new set periodically. Some demons can even loose their teeth and replace them at will. It's nothing abnormal."

When Koneko looked back to Rin, he was polishing off the remainder of his food. Everyone else also seemed more or less done as well.

"Konekomaru?"

Rin was addressing him again.

"Yes?"

"Do you want to take care of Kuro tonight?"

"Why?"

"Well, I'll be out tonight. And I doubt Kuro wants to be moved right now."

Konekomaru's eyes focused on the fluffy ball in his arms. The familiar was fast asleep. He nodded in agreement. With the consent, Rin pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and gave it to him.

"Thanks. I owe ya'.

With that, Rin took off towards the door before anyone could stop him.


	10. Chapter 9: Heavy dose

Heavy dose

Rin bolted from the room of esquires quickly to avoid any more side-ways glances and smart remarks about his genes. There were times that he was grateful for his heightened hearing, and there were times that he wasn't. This was one of those times. He had heard everything that the esquires had meant only for their own ears.

Now a reasonable distance from the room, he slowed his pace somewhat. Rin had managed to convince Konekomaru to take care of his familiar for that night. It provided a chance to see if the esquire would be able to do this long term. Then, if Kuro agreed to it, become his next carer.

His feet led him into the main school building. He took the first right, then run up the stairs. Rins slender tail flew out behind him. It ached a little, probably from the rough way he had taken to hiding it under his clothes during the day. He couldn't risk it being seen by people at school that also had the ability to see demons; though it was still highly unlikely.

Rin's mouth also felt weird. Losing teeth was a pain. It had surprised him earlier.

The young demon finally found himself at his chosen destination. To his from was the door to the headmaster's office. Before a single knock was given, Mephisto had opened the door and ushered him inside.

"Right on time", Mephisto said whilst shutting the door.

"Actually, I planned on coming sooner."

"Nonsense. Your remaining time should be spent how you want. You don't have much left."

"Well that was kinda what I wanted to ask you about"

Rin tugged on his wrist and looked down for a moment to gather his feelings before asking his question.

"Do you think... no... um..."

Mephisto pulled him to his desk and pushed him gently onto a chair in-front of his desk. The younger demon exhaled, slightly annoyed with himself for being unable to find the right words.

"Uh... with your permission, I would like to visit pop's grave."

Mephisto's expression didn't falter. Instead, he smiled and nodded.

"I'll see if I can have that arranged."

Rin let his gaze wonder around the room. Though he couldn't see it, he could sense his sword behind one of the headmaster's bookcases; no doubt a secret room. The Kurikara sword was as much a part of him as his hands and feet. It felt strange to be apart from his seal after being with it non-stop for the last few months. His attention was quickly drawn to a pile of documents on the desk in front of him.

"What about 'that'?"

The elder demon knew exactly what Rin was referring to.

"Have you told your brother?"

"No"

"That's probably for the best. All my leads have pointed to dead-ends. I'm sorry. It was false hope.

"I see."

"You don't seem shocked?"

To be honest, I was kinda expecting it."

The headmaster put his clawed hand on Rin's shoulder.

"Come back to my office in two days. I'll see if I can convince the higher ups to grant you leave of the grounds with supervision."

"Thanks."

"It's the least I could do. Now then..."

Mephisto pulled out a vile from under his coat. Rin eyed it warily.

"Is that what was agreed?"

The older demon sighed and nodded.

"Will it hurt?" Rin asked.

"Only a little, if it works properly"

The young demon uncapped it, placed the rim to his lips, tipped his head back, and swallowed quickly.

"How long till it starts working?"

"The solution needs time to be absorbed into your system. The main bulk of the effects should start to show in a couple of hours."

Rin touched the top of his ear. Inside the liquid that he had just ingested, there was a suppressant; the Grigori's way of dealing with troublesome civil demons. Assuming it worked, the suppressant would force Rin's demon half in to a dormant state. This wasn't the same as a seal. A seal had kept his demon half at bay, however it was still active. The suppressant was more like beating up his demon half and injecting a strong poison. The threat would be weakened considerably in the process, but it was still there.

Thanks to that, it also had a pleasant, or unpleasant, side affect depending on who you asked; though it was painful either way. For full demons, it was used as a form of torture. Their blood would begin to attack the weakened body like a virus. The stronger the demon blood within, the more agony the victim felt.

But Rin was only a half demon. In theory, the liquid would allow his human half to take over.

He started to feel uneasy. "I should probably get going."

"No you're not. You need to stay here; at least until I'm sure the suppressant won't kill you."

Rin didn't put up a fight. He obediently remained where he was. Mephisto sat behind his desk and flicked through a few files on top of one of four piles of paperwork. Every now and then, he spared his charge a small glance to check on his condition.

"Anything yet?" Mephisto asked

Rin subconsciously looked at his hands. His ears were slightly lowered.

"Just a bit light headed", he replied.

"That's normal."

"'Kay."

Again they waited. After half an hour, Rin started shaking his hands in an effort to get the some feeling back into them. It started with a tingling in his limbs, which turned into pins-and-needles. Now they were slowly going numb. He clenched his fingers together and held them to his body. They were a little cold also.

Mephisto stood up. He had noticed the change and decided to check on him himself instead just talking. He felt Rin's forehead, then placed two fingers below the jawline. The demon hummed.

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm losing feeling in my hands and feet."

The headmaster held his hand out as a request to see. Rin complied and gave his arm. It was taken gently.

"Your nails are already loosing their thickness. Hang on one moment. I'll get the clippers. They need cutting before the other changes start."

Mephisto pulled open the second draw behind the desk and took out some nail clippers and a file. He quickly went back to Rin and began cutting and filing off as close to the nail bed as possible. He didn't want to risk Rin injuring himself later.

"How is your head feeling?"

"Dizzy."

"Any pain?"

"No... I don't..."

The younger demon was feeling rather disorientated. His head spun and he longed for sleep. Sleep would help, maybe? He ought to ask Mephisto if that was okay. Did he need permission? There was a chair under him. What he wanted was his bed. A nice soft pillow would be highly welcomed. Why was his body upright? He needed to lie down.

"Rin?"

"Hmm?"

"You need to stay awake for a bit longer."

Rin registered what he had said after a minute of repeating the words under his breath. His head made a slow nod of understanding. There was a dull ache at his temples and near his glands. It pulsed to the same tempo as his heart. Okumura let his lids droop over his eyes and took slow, deep breaths. Nausea was setting in. He motioned to yawn but ended up chocking up bile in the back of his throat. He swallowed.

"I'm gonna be sick."

"That's fine. Don't hold it in."

He took two more gulps of air and threw up into an awaiting plastic bag. Mephisto had at some point handed it to him; he couldn't remember when. He did feel a little better afterwards, but it was temporary. His migraine became more and more intense as time went on. The headmaster eventually pulled him up by the wrist. Rin steadied himself before placing one foot in front of the other, going where-ever he was being led. His eyes were too blurry to see anything past his nose; not that he wanted to see anything at that point. The next thing he knew, he was lying across a bundle of pillows.

Mephisto rubbed Rin's back with lower back and torso with disinfectant. Rin soon found out why.

"AAAHHHHH!" he choked.

Rin rolled in a fit of pain. He thrashed and screamed. When the burning at the base of his spine intensified, he wrapped his arms around his chest and started clawing at his sides. Despite Mephisto's precautionary measures, there was still plenty of marks and tears at the skin, though significantly reduced. A thin trickle of blood dripped from his nose. His lungs were on fire. Air wheezed through the oesophagus in desperation.

Mephisto must have had enough of listening to his fellow species screeching because it wasn't long before a sharp pin prick sent the tortured being to sleep.


	11. Chapter 10: Briefing

Briefing

It was 3am. Yukio sat at the cluttered desk in Rin's and his shared room. In front of him was a mission debrief. Not only had Rin ran off somewhere all night, but he also would not be able to see him before he had to leave. Mephisto had been adamant in him going on a mission, even though it used up the limited time that he had left with his brother. Still, he supposed that Rin would be taken care of while he was gone. The mission didn't seem too complicated.

There had been reports of a strange amount of ghost activity around the family home. It appeared to be the typical reaction to the death of the grandfather. Whether it was legitimate or not was what he needed to find out. A lot of reports like this normally ended up with the ghost being exorcised easily, but on occasion the death could draw more powerful demons. At a family home this could be a major issue, especially with children involved.

Yukio sighed. His keys jingled in his pocket as he moved. The coat had been dropped over his shoulders; arms not in the sleeves as of yet. He felt a little lonely. Kuro was with Konekomaru Miwa for the night so there was no-one in the dorm. It was a little creepy, and worse; it wouldn't be the last night like this. With Rin's execution on their backs, it wouldn't be long until silence became a permanent feature in his life.

Tucking the chair behind him, he turned to his bed and picked up the essentials stored in his bag. The younger twin slid his arms into his jacket with ease and brushed it over with his hands to smooth any creases. Then he pulled out his keys.

The keys supplied by the demon headmaster were special. When used, the keys could open a pathway to step through to anywhere, so long as Mephisto's power was connected to it. The school was one of the main bases and Mephisto's current residence so, by logic, most of the doors were compatible with the small, metal portal openers. One of these doors was the very door that Yukio stood in front of; his dorm's main entrance. It was certainly useful. This way, he could quickly get to and from missions without hassle.

The young exorcist held the keys so that he could see the ends to find the correct one for where he was required to go. Eventually he found it. The key was placed into the lock and turned clockwise until it clicked.

When he opened the door, Yukio was greeted by a couple of other exorcists on the other side. The door had led to a monastery near to the site of the mission.

"Well look who decided to show up!"

Yukio clenched his fist. The owner of that loud, drunk voice was Miss Shura: his brother's and, on occasion, the esquires foul-mouthed teacher. Yukio had met her whilst Father Shiro was alive. Fujimoto had introduced her as one of his previous students. He had been new to the exorcist training at the time and, as a consequence, was constantly picked on by her.

Shura was an average height with a not-too-slim figure. Her arms and exposed middle were slender and toned from prolonged hours of excessive training and high levelled missions. A red tattoo was visible across and in her cleavage which she liked to have on full display. Everything was on full display. Yukio hated that she barely wore anything.

Today's outfit consisted of little more than a tight pair of denim hot pants that hugged her derrière so much her hips bulged slightly over the sides, and a customized red crop top which left nothing to the imagination. In all actuality, a crop top was almost exotic compared to the bikini straps that she normally wore. A stranger would find her appealing maybe, but to people who knew her, she was the one woman to avoid. No, Shura wasn't a prostitute. Nor was she a in a dating harem. Quite the opposite in fact. She was more likely to perform a rather violent circumcision on any man that got too close. That's if they were lucky.

And despite everything, she was highly skilled exorcist with a knack for the sword. Trained personally in swordsmanship and charms by the previous paladin, she had developed techniques to both kill and capture demons with ease.

The crazy lady slammed Yukio hard on the back in greeting.

"Hello there 'four eyes'. Ready to get your arse handed to yer?!"

"What?"

Another exorcist spoke up. "That makes everyone accounted for. Now then, I'll start with introductions. I am Middle-First exorcist transfer from Europe Branch 4, Pete Samuels; Dragoon and Aria."

"Upper-Second, Mura Kagame. Tamer."

"Hello everyone! I am Upper-First Class Knight and Doctor, Shura Kirigakure. I will be leading today."

"Middle-First Class Dragoon and Doctor, Yukio Okumura. Pleased to meet you."

Yukio eyed up each individual in the group. Four advanced exorcists was too many for a simple investigation.

"Can I assume that something major has happened since the pre-briefing?"

Pete handed over a clipboard. "The situation became a worst case scenario. The grandfather was a hidden tamer. When he died, his two demon familiars were free of their bonds and apparently decided to find another contractor. The 'ghost' report was actually the result of the family not having the ability to see them. If things are left as they are, it won't be long before the familiars take things too far."

Yukio thought for a moment. "That still doesn't explain why there are four of us", he murmured. "Unless..."

"Unless the familiars are high ranking demons", Shura finished.

"So that's what you meant by 'getting my arse handed to me'. Do you know what they are yet?"

This time it was Kagame who answered. "My Orang Bunian is looking into it now."

Pete's eyebrow raised quizzically. "It's rare for a Bunian to be contracted over here. They are not known to leave their forests."

"My grandmother originates from Singapore. Yusri was contracted to me on one of my visits several years ago."

There was a nod of understanding. Orang Bunian inhabit deep forests or high mountains, far from human contact, but are also known to live near human communities. They generally fall into elf category 8 due to their humble and friendly disposition, particularly towards humans. Appearence-wise, Bunian are human-like, except for pointed ears and the lack of a philtrum, and are always extremely beautiful. Their race are very closely related to Dryads so it can be difficult to tell them apart.

After waiting several minutes, Kagame's familiar, Yusri, finally appeared. He was indeed very beautiful, with white gold leaves framing his long, wavy, snowy hair and silver eyes.

"Nice catch, Mura. If you ever get tired of this one, I'll be happy to have him", Shura declared.

Kagame flushed red. Although demon/human relationships were generally frowned on, it was so common for humans to fall in love with some human-like creatures that it had become accepted in various areas of the world. Hybrids born of this nature could even live normal lives. They made up a lot of the hybrids that worked for the Grigori.

Yusri coughed once to get the exorcist's attention. His voice was silky and light when he spoke.

"The familiars in the Soto residence are both White Serpents."

"That's not good", Pete said. "We need to get them removed quickly."

Kagame placed her hand on Yusri's arm. "Can you give us more information?"

His eyes softened for a moment as he graced her features with his charmed gaze, then returned to the task at hand.

"The youngest has a fast working venom which, if I am correct, will only knock you out for a few hours. The other is slower due to age, but is more riled from the death of the master. Both are becoming increasingly aggravated. It will not be long before they begin attacking the humans directly."

Shura clapped her freakishly strong hands together. "Well let's not waste any more time talking. I wanna get this done before sunrise."


	12. Chapter 11: Fight?

Fight?

Yukio had returned to the academy dorm at around six o'clock that morning. The mission had gone more or less okay with the exception of catching actually the white snakes. Pete had used techniques unknown to Yukio from the West. He was able to create a field of containment to prevent the familiars from escaping. The Bunion, Yusri, was also a big help in locating the demons and saving time. Shura and Yukio's job had been to lure and capture. That didn't go so well. Yukio had nearly been bitten by the younger snake, or at least he thought Shura thought he had. The young Okumura imagined the feeling of fangs piercing his skin and shuddered.

He sluggishly dragged his feet to the table, after putting the key in his pocket, and removed his jacket. He slung it neatly on the back of a chair. Breakfast hadn't been prepared yet so he assumed that Rin either was not awake yet or had stayed the night at Mephisto's place.

Just to be sure, he went to check his brother's bed. Up the stairs, through the old, wooden door. Yukio peered across the room to where a snoring, Rin-sized lump had taken residence under the covers. The younger brother smiled and left him to rest. This time, he would make them breakfast. He wasn't nearly as good as his twin at the art of exquisite meals, but he could at least make cereal and toast. Which is what he did.

Yukio let Rin sleep for as long as he could without sending Rin into a panic when he woke to get to school in time. He brought the food up in a tray with some milk and set it down on the desk. The lump hadn't moved much except for a foot that had emerged from beneath the covers. It indicated that his brother was sleeping semi-faced-down.

He rested his palm on what he assumed was his brother's shoulder and shook him gently. As usual, it seemed that it would take far more than that to rouse him. Rin hadn't budged an inch. He resorted to the best known way to wake him. 'Tis an ancient technique that took Yukio years to master.

He moved his hand to the other end of the bed where Rin's exposed foot stuck out naïvely. Rin should have probably learnt by now that keeping his feet out of the covers with his twin around was a bad move. Yukio eyed up his target carefully. Under the toes or the arch? Both were a place of weakness. Both were equally affective.

Yukio decided on the arch. He lightly stroked from the ball of the foot to the heel. This earned a shiver which travelled down Rin's leg. The younger brother smirked. It had been a good while since he had tickled Rin and he was going to enjoy it. He repeated the soft touch on the arch, earning an involuntary kick from the demon. He chewed his cheek to stop himself from snickering.

Rin rolled over and pulled his pillow over his head, still asleep. Now the neck was accessible. Yukio almost snorted. He held his breath and tickled him just below the ear, imitating a spider. The response was instant. The demon moved his head to clamp down on the invasive fingers and attempted to pull away. This made the younger tickle harder. Rin burst out laughing.

"Yukio, stop!" he said between short breaths. "I'm awake! I'm awake!"

"Really? Could have fooled me", Yukio joked. He continued the light torture.

"Haha...no no really please stop..."

"Nope."

Rin crawled to the wall, dragging the duvet and Yukio with him. His escape attempt failed when the evil tickle monster gave a strong tug on the covers. Rin flew to the floor in a heap, trapping his twin in the process. Now the older brother had the advantage. Although Yukio wasn't nearly as ticklish, that didn't prevent him from being immune. Rin pinned down the arms with one hand and expertly tickled his side with the other. It was Yukio's turn to burst into a fit of giggles.

"Okay, I get it...you win!" Yukio laughed.

"Yup."

"You stopping?"

"Not till I've had my revenge."

Rin moved his hands to the tummy. His brother curled into a ball on contact. Yukio's eyes scrunched together in uncontrollable laughter. His attacker grinned.

"Okay, okay...haha...sorry. I'm sorry."

"Thanks."

"St-st-haha stop."

"Say 'I'm sorry for waking amazing King Rin The Great'. Then I'll stop."

"I may be desperate, but I'm not that desperate", Yukio panted.

"Too bad."

Rin launched into another round of tickle war but this time Yukio was ready. He rolled over, grabbed his brother's wrist, pushed him to the floor, then sat on his back.

"Ow OW! No fair, Yukio! That hurts!"

"I guess we're even then", he said smugly.

"No, no. I'm being serious. That really hurts! Please get off!"

Yukio had been certain not to sit on his brother's tail. He definitely couldn't feel it under him. In fact he hadn't seen it.

Unsure on whether he was joking or not he responded, "You calling me fat."

"No? ..es? ...don't care...off."

"Rin?"

Yukio hurried off of him and let him sit up. He tried to get a good look at his brother for the first time that morning. He didn't like what he saw. Rin's face showed marks of pain along his brow. Dried sweat stuck to his forehead and cracks decorated his dried lips. But that wasn't what got his attention.

"Brother, what have you done to yourself?"

What indeed? Where his ears were once pointed, there now was a smooth arc. Fangs no longer protruded through his gums. Instead, a still bloody, new set of smaller teeth took their place. Yukio lifted the end of this brother's shirt a fraction. Across the spine was a small raw red line which stopped at where his tail should have been. At the base was a scabby, weeping mess.

Rin shrugged and turned away.

"I didn't do anything except what I was told."

The younger kissed his teeth and kicked the air in a rare show of aggression.

"Mephisto, right?"

Rin sighed. "Yeah. But it was the Grigori that ordered it."

Yukio was a little anxious of the wound on his twin's back. It didn't appear to be healing properly and, now that the powers that would have him healed at lightening speed were gone, he was worried about infection. The toxic formula had run it's course through the body and voided Rin of his demon half.

"Yukio, listen. This was the condition that the Grigori set so that I could have a little longer before...being dealt with. This way I'm harmless."

"You mean..."

"Yeah. They were going to take me away two days ago. It's thanks to Mephisto that I have a few more days. It isn't much but I hope that... never mind."

"So, is this what you were talking about with him from before?"

Rin scratched his head.

"How much did you hear from then?" Rin asked nervously.

"Mephisto said something about something that needed verifying and information that hadn't gone public. It was your execution and that damn potion, wasn't it?"

Yukio was embarrassed now. Admitting that he had heard a potentially important part of a private conversation didn't exactly count towards his good character, but he needed to know. At the same time, he was also angry at the fact that Rin had kept all of this to himself. Rin may have been the reason for their father's death, but he was the only family he had left. Not just a brother, but a twin.

The day that Rin's seal broke and this whole mess had started, Yukio had come home to the monastery where he had grown up, only to find a demon with Satan's flames in the place of his brother, crouched over the Kurikara sword in tears. Father Fujimoto was dead, blood and burns and something not quite human. The remains of a Gehenna Gate, the entry way to the world of demons, were concentrated to where his brother was crying. Evil being. Murderer. What was he supposed to think. That day felt like he had not just lost his adoptive father, but his twin as well.

Yukio had never heard the full story from his brother's lips. He refused to talk about it. He had to piece together the memories of other exorcists who were there when it happened. Seeing Rin in a human state once again wasn't how he thought it would be. Instead of being happy, he felt the complete opposite.

Rin finally spoke. "Not really. We talked about a few other things. What you heard wasn't referring to you specifically."

Yukio scowled but dropped the subject. The demon-turned-human was running his tongue along his teeth and gently rubbing his back. The spot where his tail had been yesterday was ruining his shirt as it oozed clear and red sludge. The younger pulled out a first aid kit from under his bed and left the room momentarily. He came back with a bowl of warm water.

"Take off your shirt, brother. I'll treat it."

Rin did as he was asked. The marks that were made when he had clawed at himself shone bright red against his pale skin. Yukio only hesitated for a moment whilst washing the infected area and bandaging it properly, wrapping the medical fabric around the body to hold it in place.

"It hurt, didn't it? When you took the drug."

"I don't really remember. One minute I was watching Mephisto going through his papers, and the next thing I know you were waking me up here.

He was satisfied with that answer. At least Rin had forgotten most of the experience. He knew how bad an affect the drug could have on anything with demon origin.

Yukio finished patching up his brother by clipping the end neatly and handed him a clean shirt for school. They would be late but right now that didn't matter. Mephisto should make an exception for today he hoped.


	13. Chapter 12: Friday

Friday

Yukio practically dragged his brother to school. They were already an hour late and the middle-first class exorcist didn't want to be any later. Rin grumbled about his indigestion from eating breakfast too fast. It was hardly surprising. The younger had shovelled it into his mouth without morning. With his radical change in his physical state, his stomach, for the first time in months, felt full and his hunger gone. The tummy ache ruined the feeling.

It was also raining. Droplets patted the ground lightly and were absorbed in to the earth. Too small and too few to make any sound other than a gentle rustling in the leaves. Even Rin wouldn't have known about it if it wasn't for the water kissing his face. His senses had been reduced to the state that they were in before his awakening. It was strange. Like waking up from a vivid dream: the dream was more real than reality.

Something simple like keeping up with Yukio made him short of breath. His healing had slowed and his strength was gone. Even when Rin's demon half was sealed by Shiro he had never felt so weak. Yukio was used to handling a hard-headed, strong demon. Not a human-ish frailer older brother. Rin was causing a resistance to Yukio's pulling, but not from the normal reasons. He would hold back sometimes to tease or go at his own pace. Now he simply could not keep up. And the grip on his wrist was painful. He could feel bruises beginning to form, something that never happened before.

"Can you slow down a bit?"

Yukio kept looking ahead as they moved towards the main building. A month ago, even the slightest touch was treated like a taboo. Both brothers avoided it whenever they could, though Rin longed for the warmth and sense of acceptance that he had once felt. Now Yukio was touching him willingly. His hold hurt him but it was nice.

"Can't do that. We're already late as it is. I don't want to be later."

The older brother smiled. He had missed this. Being human.

The outside of the school was nearly empty. Only a few pupils were around. Stragglers and truants. There were no free periods on Friday mornings. This was a good thing. It meant that the twins were able to get in without too much fuss. Yukio left Rin in the hallway on the way to his own lesson.

To say that he wasn't nervous would be a lie, but he doubted anyone other than the esquires would notice that there was anything different. This is because regular humans cannot see demons. To the common eye, he had looked human to them before the change. In order to see demons one has to acquire a taint. Apparently Rin had given Yukio his taint in the womb. The younger brother had been able to see demons since he was before he was born, his first being none other than his twin.

Rin quickly brushed his hair to settle above his ears with his fingers so that the tips were covered. They were red and sore from last night which made them sensitive to the touch. He didn't want the attention of the other esquires.

He held a quick breath as he opened the door. As expected, every student acknowledged his presence with their full attention. Arriving late wasn't uncommon but arriving as late as he did definitely got everyone asking questions. Their black pupils bore into his with a look of wonder and mischief. The sort of look that a child would have if they knew something that their friends didn't. In school's, rumours spread like wild fire and Rin was the victim of these particular rumours. All eyes were on him, and they burned.

The teacher ushered him in with a stern expression and gestured for Rin to go to his seat. The chair touched his sore spot when he sat. It was weird to not have anything there any more. He was slightly off balance and found it difficult to not over-compensate his weight; a habit that had occurred from getting used to the, now gone, appendage.

Rin did his best to concentrate throughout the remainder of the lesson, though it was difficult to ignore the snide comments and glares from his classmates. His ears were not what they used to be, but he could still catch some of what was being said. Word had gotten out about the changing room incident.

They were talking about his disgusting, unnatural body. Anorexia Nervosa. Cancer. Inability to take care of himself. Depression. Everyone had their own ideas. Their comments were hurtful. And it wouldn't be long before someone would confront him about it. If Rin's ears were still a demon's, he was sure that they would be flat against his head.

Rin wanted to talk to Kuro. He needed some time with his familiar to relax a bit. He needed some time to think for himself. Konekomaru would return him at some point, but until then he felt lonely. The half demon still hadn't told Kuro about what was going to happen in a few days time. The harder he thought about it, the more he wanted to avoid it. This was not fair on the cat sith. He had already lost one master, and he was soon to lose another. But his loyal friend deserved to know. Kuro deserved it.

A paper ball interrupted his thoughts as it hit him on the head. Turning his head slightly revealed a slightly nervous Paku watching Suguro warily. The paper had fallen under the desk. There was a brief pause until the teacher started writing something on the board in English with translation. English classes were a pain. Mrs Johnson was one of the most strict teachers in the school. Unfortunately, she had already noted Rin in her mental book of 'delinquents and troublemakers' so she made a point of keeping an eye on him.

The paper ball was removed from the floor and opened at his lap, out of sight of Mrs Johnson.

_/Pink did it./_

'Pink' referred to the pink-haired Shima, though what he had done he didn't know exactly. Rin quickly scribbled a 'what?' under the message, screwed up the paper again, then threw it back to the sender. When the ball came back, he caught it this time.

_/Talking. Said you were sick after school./_

Another unexpected ball hit his head.

_/You don't look so good./_

"So they had noticed", Rin thought. This made things more complicated. He didn't want to tell them what was happening. So he exorcised a dry sense of humour.

_/Na. Just TB./_

It made Suguro laugh. It was impossible for demons to catch many of the diseases that affected humans.

The bell marked the end of the lesson.

"Page 84 for homework", the teacher said in English. "Mr Okumura, Mr Suguro, don't leave just yet.

The class left. Konekomaru, who had somehow managed to fade into the background, and Paku reluctantly went also. Mrs Johnson found both pieces of paper and read them out loud. But before she got to the end, she stopped.

"I had a phone call from he headmaster saying that you would not be attending today because you were seriously ill."

She looked him up and down, eyeing the sunken skin and discoloured face which his demon half had left him with.

"You should not be joking about being sick, especially from something life-threatening. You need to go home."

"But I'm fine Sensei."

She placed a hand on his forehead. Rin sighed but stood as still as he'd dare.

"You're very cold. Go to the nurse."

Rin's core temperature was warmer when his demon half wasn't suppressed. He had not expected it to have gone down quite so dramatically. Ryuji seemed to have noticed the remark was out of the norm and shook his head.

"Alright. Can I go now?"

The teacher nodded. Both left swiftly. When Suguro was satisfied that the corridor was clear, he grabbed Rin's slightly swollen wrist and directed him to a disused classroom, currently used as storage space for the drama club. Needless to say that Rin fell flat on his face from the sudden pull and his lack of strength. Suguro shut the door.

"Up", he commanded.

Rin crawled away, picked himself up, and sat on one of the many boxes that littered the room.

"What is it now?"

"You're cold", rooster-head dead-panned. "Your dumb-ass attitude is back but you look like you could snap in half. What happened to make your condition deteriorate so much from yesterday?"

He held the should-be-demon in a rough headlock. In his demon form he would brush this off easily, but in his current predicament he was in pain. It felt like he was choking.

"Seriously, man. You should have stayed at home today. I told you that you're too skinny for your own good."

The nausea that Rin vaguely remembered from the night that he had spent with Mephisto, and the hurried breakfast, came back to bite him. Failing to push off the esquire's arm, he was forced to vomit, rather embarrassingly, on the rooster's foot.

"Oi, what are you...? Shit! Rin?!"


	14. Chapter 13: Effect

Effect

"Oi, what are you...? Shit! Rin?!"

Rin kept his eyelids shut and coughed as more partially digested cereal departed his lips. The acidity burned his oesophagus. It would have been nice to keep some food in him but his stomach had other ideas. After a final wretch, the sickly boy stopped and breathed steadily. He didn't want to look at the mess he'd made just yet. That would probably make him sick again. And there wasn't complete certainty, but he was quite sure that there was a direct bullseye on Suguro's shoe.

Bon had moved his position from a head-lock to holding Rin upright so that he could still stand. When the episode ended, Suguro pulled off his vomit-covered shoe with his right foot and kicked it away. Rin didn't think he wanted to wear it again.

"What the Hell, idiot!"

"Sorry I ruined your shoes."

"You really don't have a clue, do you?" Suguro muttered.

He helped the oldest Okumura back onto the box he had been sitting on. Rin watched a phone appear from inside his pocket.

"I'm gonna call Mr Oku... I mean Yukio. I'm no expert but even I can tell that you shouldn't be here in your condition."

Rin reached out and snatched the flip-phone.

"It's fine. I'll do it. He'll worry too much if you tell him."

"Alright, but don't bend the truth. I know what you're like. Demons don't get sick so something's going on.

The numbers were dialled in sequence.

"I really am sorry about your shoes. I'll clean up the mess in a minute."

"No. You're going to sit there until your brother comes. Then I'm getting my trainers from my locker."

The call went straight to answer machine, indicating that Yukio had is phone turned off.

"Looks like you might need to rethink your plan. Bro's not answering."

"Of all times..."

Suguro took the phone back, pressed a few buttons, and placed it to his ear.

"Hey Miwa. It's me."

There was a pause.

"Yeah I know break's nearly over. It's an emergency. Rin was sick... Yeah. Come to room 153."

Rin scoffed. "It's not an emergency you know."

Suguro chose to ignore him. More people involved with his problems only made things worse. Okumura only had a few days left and he wanted them to be spent cutting ties, not making them. Explaining why he was ill also didn't appeal. The esquire finished chatting to the guy on the other end of the line, probably Shima, judging by the way he was acting. Konekomaru must have given his phone to him for a bit.

It didn't take too long before Konekomaru and Shima arrived with Shiemi. Apparently they thought she could help because of her healing knowledge. They hadn't risked sending for the nurse just yet due to Rin's amazing ability to heal, though it didn't seem to be working. His wrist was still bruised.

"Kamiki's going to get Yuki", Shiemi spoke as she ran in. Ni balanced on her shoulder ready to work.

Shima laughed loudly at Suguro. "Good shot Rin! You got Bon good."

"Shut up, Shima."

The boy with pink dyed hair raised his hands in mock defence. "Fine, fine, Bon."

Shiemi had already made her way to Rin's side. Her familiar was attempting to clear up the yellow, lumpy puddle. The blond looked him over and checked his temperature. She didn't appear pleased with her overall analysis. In fact, it resulted in moving Rin to the floor and asking for everyone's jackets for insulation. Was it really that bad? Apparently so.

"I'm alright, guys."

Shiemi wordlessly pointed to the pile of breakfast, half cleared from the floor. He couldn't think of a way to talk himself out of that. And lying down wasn't helping his stomach. He needed to sit up or he had a feeling that he wouldn't have anything left in him. Suguro caught on; helping him into a more comfortable position.

Koneko was more cautious. He stayed next to the door, away from Rin.

"Hey. I don't think you should be so close to him. What if his flames go out of control?"

"That won't happen", Rin mumbled under his breath.

"We should be fine as long as the Kurakara is sheathed", Shima said. "Speaking of, where is it?"

"Mephiso has it."

"Well that's one less thing to worry about. I did wonder where it was", Shima replied.

Suguro was sceptical of that but kept it to himself. Meanwhile, Rin had had enough. He was feeling claustrophobic, which in turn, wasn't helping his gut settle. He stood up, despite the dirty look that Suguro gave him, and the yelling from the usually shy Shiemi to sit back down. As far as Rin was concerned, he had a class to get too.

Konekomaru stood between him and the exit. The black fur around his sleeve reminded him of Kuro. Rin had an idea. He could use his illness to his advantage.

"Oh, that's right, Konekomaru. You still have Kuro, right?"

"You want him back?"

"Well yeah, but I don't want him to catch this", Rin lied. If Kuro stayed with Konekomaru, they would have longer to bond. It was Rin's hope that Kuro would take to him enough to prevent a rampage like what happened when Shiro Fujimoto died. "Mind keeping him a bit longer?"

Konekomaru nodded. A good thing too because Rin wasn't feeling one-hundred percent. He didn't want to be sick again, not after Ni had just finished clearing up. He tried to swallow.

"Let's get to class. We're already late."

"Not you", Suguro cut in.

Rin didn't have the strength to fight him. What he needed was some time to himself, away from people; exactly what would happen if he obeyed. Sure enough, everyone went to class when Yukio and Kamiki turned up. Kamiki glared at Rin before moving along to her lesson. She probably came to the room to see how ill he looked. He'd be laughed at later.

Yukio made a face that the older brother didn't like. Worry and pity did not suit him. He preferred rage, or joy, or excitement, or hatred. There was no reason to feel worry for a dead man, or pity for a condemned monster.

The younger sibling quickly called the Headmaster's number. Rin couldn't understand the voice on the other end of the line; one thing he almost missed about having enhanced hearing. Almost. Unfortunately, this meant that he couldn't make heads or tails of the conversation. It wasn't helping that most of the talking seemed to be coming from Mephisto if Yukio's long pauses were anything to go by. Around five minutes later, Yukio placed his phone in his pocket.

"Your body is fighting off the toxins. He said it's a side effect of internal conflict between your demon and human halves. Rin. Have you had any other symptoms other than sickness and cold flushes?"

"No. Not right now"

Yukio visibly relaxed.

"That's good. Listen brother, Mephisto gave us leave to go back to the dorms."

Rin nodded. Sleep sounded pretty good. His body was knackered.


	15. Chapter 14: Cat

Cat

Kuro sat, quite comfortably, on Konekomaru's bed. It was a nice bed; certainly nicer than Rin's. The abandoned dorm still had the old furniture and cots from ten years ago. Baldy had a softer matrice and a thicker duvet.

Rin moved a lot in his sleep so using his master's warmth for his own convenience was off the table until he was awake. Baldy, on the other hand, had petted his head and remained in the same position throughout the night. He wasn't as warm as his master, but it was still good.

Not that Kuro wanted to stay the whole night. He had the itch to go hunting at some point. Rin always left a window open enough for the cat sith to go through in case of instances like this one. But Kuro couldn't find an exit. He decided to make do with chasing little black tar demons around the room. It was at times like these that he was grateful that he didn't wear a bell around his neck like he has seen other cats wear. It would disturb his hunting and alert his prey of his location.

The guardsmen at the gate that his beloved Shiro had once asked him to guard, had suggested that he wear a collar with one of those bells so that they could hear where he was in case he was needed. Fortunately, his previous master dismissed the idea. He had said, 'if something were to happen, I trust that Kuro would be the first to know'. And it was true. Kuro had been vigilant in his duty. There was only one time that the demon cat had been the last to know something, and that had been his master's death.

Three months ago. It had been three months since then. Kuro knew that something was wrong from the sudden change in the attitudes of the exorcists that worked with him. They had become sullen and withdrawn; a sign of mourning. Only, at the time he hadn't realised what it was. The familiar had interpreted it as preparation for an attack. So Kuro had waited, anxiously, for briefing and orders from friend Shiro.

Except friend Shiro never came. So Kuro remained waiting.

Then weeks later, Kuro finally overheard the exorcists talking about him. They were feeling sorry for him. Why? It didn't take too long to put together the pieces of the puzzle. But he didn't want to believe it. He refused to believe it. His master; who had saved him from his previous life in a crumbling shrine; who had drank together and spent long nights side by side viewing the moon, was gone. Dead.

He desperately hung onto the this strands of hope that it wasn't true. But he could feel at the back of his neck and the pit of his stomach that there was something very wrong. Then finally, a loose-mouthed guard confirmed it.

In denial, Kuro attacked them. Mind blank and emotions soaring, he lost all control of himself.

"Lier's!" he had said.

That was when he had met Rin. He had seen him before when Rin was young but never met him properly. He had grown some. It was amazing how much Yukio had grown as well in the short time that it had been since his last visit.

But all of that was ignored as he lashed out in a rage of despair. They would have had to put him to sleep to get him to stop. And they definitely tried to. No-one understood. He wasn't allowed to mourn. They were laughing at him. How could a familiar not know that their master had been dead for so long?

As it turned out, Rin did understand. The adopted son of his master understood his grief. Rin saved him in the same way that Shiro had. Once again he had a friend that he could trust and talk to; plus there was the added bonus of Rin's ability to speak in the same tongue.

The cat sith yawned and stretched. Baldy would be back soon. The sound of students coming back to the dorms echoed through the corridors.

It was Suguro that entered first. Apparently, Suguro originally shared a room with Shima and switched after the first month. It made sense. Suguro got on better with Konekomaru.

Rooster-head (so called because of the blond strip of fluffy Mohawk that nested atop his head) went straight to his designated bunk and half fell, half jumped face-first into the inviting covers. That looked fun. Kuro hopped off the bed and lept onto Suguro's to join him.

Bon moved his head so that his face was no longer planted into his pillow. Kuro made sure that the first thing the esquire would see was be him.

"Oh. Hey boy. Miwa's not here yet."

"I know that, human. When will he be back?" Kuro asked.

"Your master's a real idiot, you know."

The demon nudged his side in agreement. Bon lazily lifted his hand and scratched behind the ears. Kuro leaned into the scratch, contentedly.

"Rin's gonna get it when I next see him."

The ongoings between Rin and the other esquires concerned Kuro a fair amount. They were hurting his friend greatly, yet they were nice to the cat demon. He didn't quite understand where Suguro's heart lay. Did he hate Rin, or was his anger and negativity from being worried about him?

"Just don't make him sad, okay", Kuro responded. Unfortunately, Suguro couldn't understand what he was saying.

"You hungry?"

Kuro tilted his head. "What makes you think I said that?"

"You know Rin gave instructions on how to feed you on the note he gave Miwa."

"I didn't asked to be fed. I asked when baldy would be back."

Suguro simply turned away, lying with his back to him. Kuro gave up. He padded over to the end of the bed and curled up neatly into a ball.

"Oh yeah. Rin said you can stay the weekend", came Suguro's tired, muffled voice. Kuro flicked an ear in acknowledgement. Hopefully the weekend would be less boring. No school meant more free time. More free time meant more time to play. The cat demon let his eyelids slide shut.

Then Miwa arrived.

Shoes on wooden floor boards sounded up to the room. The door was flung open, hitting the wall and bouncing back on the rebound. Konekomaru was not happy. Definitely not happy. Kuro cowered out of the way and under the bed as the new-comer bounded up to Suguro.

"Bon, why?"

Suguro didn't move. When he spoke, his voice had a hint of annoyance.

"What did I do this time, Miwa?

"You know what", said Konekomaru through gritted teeth. Kuro was surprised to see the smaller human show this much animosity. He was normally so calm and collected. And in the case of Suguro's general attitude, it was like watching the pair switch personalities.

It only took a moment to guess what this was about, and Kuro did not like where this conversation was heading.

"Okumura", Ryuji relented.

A moment passed in silence. The body that was once still, suddenly jerked upwards into a sitting position. Dark brown eyes bore into Miwa's flaming ones.

"Mind explaining what's got your arse itching?"

Konekomaru left no room for breath. "Why did you help him?! He's the 'thing' that Satan made. The creation of the devil that killed my parents! And you. You!. You 'took charge' and took care of 'it' like you were family. I thought us Shima, you and I were like blood brothers; not 'that'."

"Damn, Koneko. Did you actually look at him?"

"Oh I saw everything -".

"Yeah, you 'saw'. But did you actually 'look'?"

Kuro let out a breath that he hadn't realised he had been holding. The room was silent again. Konekomaru walked slowly to his bunk and sat on the edge, his hands clenching together.

"...I looked", he whispered. "Sorry, Bon. I've just got mixed feelings about this. I don't know what to think any more."

"You're scared", Ryuji commented.

"Yeah, maybe I am. I know that not all demons are bad. Kuro, and Ni, and the foxes are living examples; but with Rin..."

"Give it time."

Kuro peeked out nervously from beneath the wooden frame. Suguro quickly pulled him from the ground and propped him on his lap. The little, black demon didn't like being picked up, so showed his displeasure by rumbling his throat.

"Seems like you freaked out the cat."

His ears immediately flipped to the back of his head. Suguro laughed, and eventually Koneko joined in.


	16. Chapter 15: Feeling better?

Feeling better?

Yukio supported Rin on his way back to the dorms. He had made sure to give him a good check over for any symptoms he may have missed. The poison had it's uses, but now Yukio was beginning to rethink his previous opinions on the subject. His brother was not exactly in the best of states after consuming it, even if it did make him appear more human. If the young exorcist had to choose between human Rin who was in pain and sick, and demon Rin who was fitter and healthier...

It had been a few hours since then so the school would have already finished classes. No-one had exactly been pleased with the situation that they had been placed in. Suguro, Konekomaru, Shiemi, Kamiki, Shima. Okay, maybe not Shima. When he had arrived, Suguro had taken charge. His face was serious and angry. Konekomaru was too scared of his brother to even go near him. When Rin had actually talked to the otherwise timid esquire, Yukio was positive that he would either run or lash out verbally. It was a surprise for him to accept what was being said and actually respond to the request so normally. It was also a bit surprising that his older brother had sent Kuro away for a bit.

Rin was at his desk; lying down made him feel worse. Yukio was reading on his bed after opting to stay with him. The room was quiet except for the occasional wheeze from the poisoned demon. Time passed silently. Eventually, the side effects subsided. His face was a little pinker, his eyes a little brighter.

It was about then that Rin had the courage to try keeping down something light. Yukio managed to make a somewhat bland soup. If it was bad, Rin didn't show it. He was very grateful for even the smallest gesture of food at that point. He sipped it happily.

The younger twin eyed his brother while he ate.

"You seem better."

Rin slowed his eating somewhat. "I feel better."

Yukio's lips curved slightly upwards. His brother's body was finally settling.

"Yukio?"

He sighed. "Yes, brother?"

"Mephisto said that tomorrow he'd try to grant me leave to visit dad's grave. Do you-"

The younger tapped the back of Rin's head and ruffled his fluffy nest. Rin blew a few stray hairs away from his face.

"Yes, I want to go with you."

The young demon nodded gratefully. Kuro would probably want to go too. The cat sith was also part of the family; as close as a second brother, to Rin at least. To Yukio, Kuro was a highly intelligent demon cat. But, demon or no, a cat was still a cat. More of a pet than close family.

Yukio chuckled. "You should probably let Kuro know. I'm surprised that you didn't tell Konekomaru earlier."

Rin rocked back and forth.

"You haven't told him anything yet, have you?"

The older turned away. "I don't want him to know."

Yukio rolled his eyes and edged closer. "Rin. You need to."

"Yeah."

After everything that had happened with Shiro, Kuro's reaction to the death of his next master would be unpredictable at best. The exorcist placed his hand in his pocket and found his phone. He arranged to meet the boys at the dorms to collect Kuro.

"W-wait", Rin stammered. "I'll go too."

"Brother, you're still sick."

"I'm fine now."

Yukio groaned. "You're not going."

Rin licked the corner of his mouth and prepared to pounce. If he still had a tail, it would be flicking behind him. Yukio came to the conclusion that some instincts just couldn't be suppressed. Unfortunately for Rin, his strength was currently far less than it had been. But that didn't stop him from trying. Whatever he was planning probably didn't need too much effort.

When it came to fighting, Yukio had the sharper reflexes and a high accuracy for long ranged attacks. Hand to hand combat, though, was Rin's forte. Before training with the sword, he would often get into brawls with anyone that ticked him off. It wasn't that Rin was a bad person. Most of the fights when they were younger were normally the result of his older brother protecting him.

Rin's leg pushed off and he leapt into the air. Yukio twisted to avoid the oncoming attack, only to find it had stopped short by a few inches. Rin tumbled, flipped himself around on his hand, and stood up with his back to him as if nothing had happened. His head was down and arms ending in front of the chest.

Confused, Yukio asked,"What was that about?"

The older didn't reply, concentrating on what he was holding. Yukio took a slow breath and walked to him.

"And send", Rin mumbled.

It was then that Yukio knew what Rin was holding, even without seeing what it was. He realised that he was no longer holding his phone. To think that Rin was able to move with such speed in his weakened condition. Maybe Rin had gotten over the initial side effects, but he was still considerably weaker than even before his demon blood had awakened.

"Brother, what did you do?" the younger asked cautiously. Rin laughed, turned around and waved the screen in his face.

"Sent a text to rooster-head."

Yukio raised his eyebrows.

"They'll be coming here now. Happy?" he sung.

Yukio pressed his glasses along the bridge of his nose. "Why couldn't you have just used yours?"

Rin's smile spread wider. Yukio dared to look at the message for long enough to read it. He had to admit that his twin knew how to ruin a person with the use of his expertly placed, colourful language. Some of the words on screen were Rin's originals. If only his enthusiasm and creativity extended to more beneficial things. Not that it mattered now.

Yukio sighed."You know Ryuji will know it was you."

"Who cares. I can't wait to see his face." Rin glanced at the clock. "Won't be long now."

It took but five minutes. The twins went to the door, Yukio walking calmly and Rin swaying a little. Still not recovered completely but it was a definite improvement. They needn't have bothered. The door was pushed open with as much force as the almost six foot angry boy on the other side could muster. Suguro stood at the entryway in front of Konekomaru who was holding a rather amused Kuro.

"Who sent it?!"

Yukio pointed to his brother with a black expression and Rin pointed back.

"Sorry Okumura-sensei. I just needed to make sure."

"That's fine", Yukio responded.

Ryuji faced Rin and cracked his knuckle. "Just 'coz you're sick, doesn't mean that I won't feel bad about a couple of well placed punches."

Kuro had been staring at Rin for a good while. Then something seemed to click. He no longer sat in Miwa's arms. In a flash of black, the cat familiar had placed himself in a threatening stance between Suguro and his master. Taking no notice, Suguro stepped closer.

Kuro made a high pitched screech. He jumped up and clung onto Suguro's arm, wrapping his legs firmly around the limb. Blood flowed from the puncture wounds created by the cat's implanted claws. It looked painful. Yukio moved to ease off the distressed cat.

"What's wrong with him?" Suguro yelled, trying to shake off his attacker.

Even Konekomaru was confused. "Kuro-kitty?"

"Rin", Yukio called to his brother. "A little help here."

Kuro stopped struggling immediately at the sound of his master's name.

Rin visibly swallowed. "Buddy? What's wrong?"

The cat sith meowed.

"Look, see? I'm okay."

Another longer meow.

Yukio was able to peel Kuro off of a wincing Suguro, paw by paw. It appeared that Rin was still able to understand his familiar despite his demon half being suppressed. A thought occurred. Could his brother still see the minor demons? Coal tar and soot demons? Ghosts? It would be a question for another time. For now at least, the other two exorcists in training had no knowledge of the physical state that Rin's body was in, and posing such a question could lead to them finding out about the suppressant, and eventually the execution. Not something that his twin wanted to spread around.

But Kuro could sense something. Probably the change in his master's scent or 'feel' that Rin had mentioned a few months ago. The 'feeling' which told Rin who was human and who was demon. Yukio placed his palm on his forehead. Of course the cat was acting this way he reasoned. Kuro was confused and upset because Rin wasn't 'Rin'.

Rin had knelt down beside his familiar and held his hand out in offering. Kuro's ears were back and his tail flicked hesitantly. With a bit of patience, the familiar finally accepted the hand and nudged it softly, craving his master's touch. Yukio caught the reaction of the two spectators at the door. Suguro, still nursing his arm, had become suspicious. And Konekomaru didn't look too happy either.

"What was that all about?", his students asked together.

"He can probably sense that I'm sick", Rin quickly replied. It was a half lie that Yukio would clarify with him later. His ideas were probably correct.

Suguro was still scanning every little bit of his brother. Eventually a spark appeared in his eye when he found something. He voiced his thoughts plainly.

"Don't you normally keep your tail out at home?"

Rin stiffened.

"Maybe I don't like you guys yelling at me about it all the time."

A good lie and a low blow. He continued, "It's not like I enjoy knocking it into things and having it stepped on."

Suguro almost stopped the conversation there. Almost. Unfortunately for him, Suguro was stubborn and had noticed too much too let it drop. With one sentence he managed to unravel Rin's lies and lay them bare.

"You look human."


	17. Chapter 16: Relief

Relief

"You look human."

Well fuck...

Rin tensed. "What now?", he thought. His face had yet to gage a reaction. It was as if time was standing still. He certainly wished that it could. Then Rin could simply walk away and disappear somewhere without the others knowing. Seconds, minutes. It was difficult to tell exactly how fast time was moving in the real world. To him, it was hours, and somehow that wasn't long enough.

Yukio suddenly broke Rin's internal silence. "What makes you say that?"

Rin slowly let his eyes wonder to his brother. Maybe his twin would talk them out of this. Rin had never been good at words but Yukio had managed to keep him in the dark about his taint and his training to be an exorcist until recently. It was plausible, or at least he hoped so. The one thing that he really didn't want to deal with so close to his execution was more accusations and arguments.

He had had enough. Tired. That described him best. he was tired of having to live through every day of his life as the filth under everyone's shoe.

His familiar nudged his hand affectionately.

"Rin? Are you really Rin?", the cat asked quietly.

"Yeah, it's me". He gently moved his hands under Kuro's belly and lifted him to his chest. Kuro didn't fight Rin. He let his master hold him.

"Oi!"

Rin raised his head to look at Suguro.

"Give me some credit. I know what happened to you, idiot, and I thought about it. This doesn't mean I agree with it and all, but I figured..."

Rin and Yukio both gaped at the esquire with open mouths. Was Rin really so obvious in appearance, or had someone told him the truth. Mephisto sprung to mind. The headmaster did like to stir up unnecessary trouble.

"Uh, stop staring at me like that. It's kinda freaky."

Rin lowered his gaze and his twin composed himself. "How did you figure this out?", Yukio asked. The older brother understood what he was doing. If Yukio could find out what gave them away, he could prevent others from finding out in the same way.

Bon lightly swept his fluffy Mohawk. "Well, I've known for a while that something wasn't right with you. And today sort of proved it."

Rin tilted his head in confusion. How much did he know? Did he know about the execution? He hoped not. It would be easier for everyone if he slid under the radar for a little while longer. He didn't want to deal with any more snark comments on his erasure, particularly when others knew that their words would become a reality. His reality.

"You're more human than we thought. It was too easy for us to forget that you are half human too."

"Bon...", Konekomaru said. Rin had forgotten that he was still there.

Suguro continued, "Demons don't get sick like that, but humans do. Half demons inherit most of the immunity of their demon part. So that leaves one thing that your state could be caused by. You're self harming, aren't you?"

So he didn't know after all.

Yukio pulled a silly face. "Not to my knowledge." Rin snorted.

"But... You've got depression, right?", Konekomaru countered.

There was no denying that. Though he had it long before he awakened. Rin wasn't so stupid as to self harm. He had tried it once and passed it off as a cut he got in one of his recent fights with bullies at his old school, but it didn't satisfy him as much as he thought it would. Back then, he was more violent in nature so his pent up aggression and frustration was normally directed to a nearby wall. He preferred that.

Now though, Rin had learnt to hold it in. And that had been what had pushed him to be withdrawn and disconnected with reality. The logic was 'if I don't give people the chance, people can't hurt me'.

He stood up. "Just because I'm like this, doesn't mean I cut."

"Self harm isn't just cutting."

"What are you saying that I'm doing then?"

Suguro sighed. "I'm looking at it. I saw it earlier today and I'm looking at it now." He jabbed an accusing finger in to Rins ribs. "You're starving yourself".

Yukio gave a look of understanding.

"I ate in front of you yesterday, remember?"

"Yeah I remember, stupid. You were also sick the day after eating with us. The body reacts like that if you don't eat for a period and suddenly eat a lot at once."

Kuro was enjoying being petted and began purring like a broken motor. It wad laughable that he would come to this conclusion. Rin snickered to himself. The more Suguro went on, the harder it was for Rin to contain himself.

"...and if you keep doing this I'll tell the headmaster what's gong on coz this is really getting out of hand."

That did it. Rin threw his head back and laughed harder than he had ever laughed before.

"Headmaster? Are you kidding? Him of all people?"

Suguro grew red.

Yukio stepped forward and looked at his pupil squarely. "You are over-thinking this. Rin does get sick sometimes. He had a cold a couple of months ago, remember?", he said coolly. This made Suguro huff.

"You know what? Forget it", he said as he moved back away from the door. "I don't know why I even bothered talking to you."

Konekomaru and Suguro went back to their dorm. Yukio shut the door.

"Do you think we got way with it?"

"Maybe, Rin."

The little familiar had fallen asleep in his master's arms. Yukio rubbed the fur around the ears.

"When are you going to tell Kuro? He needs to know."

Rin thought. The sooner that his cat sith knew, the better it would be in the long run.

"I'll explain it when he wakes up."

"Do you want me to help?" Yukio offered.

"No", he replied assertively. Rin decided that Kuro deserved to hear the whole truth from him. He deserved at least that much. Until then, he needed to plan for his trip. He wanted to make an offering. The first meal that he ever made for his father. Omelette. It was a symbol of the beginning of his passion to cook which stemmed from the one person that the had looked up to.


End file.
